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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: vault · straw · bore · sharp · chest · squash · rule · lash

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. rule — government
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. vault — a safe
  11. bore — to drill
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. chest — of your body
  14. sharp — clever
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. squash — the sport
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. rule — a law
  22. squash — to crush
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. straw — dry grass

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com