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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.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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: bat · rush · sharp · vault · cold · board · mate · key

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. key — the most important part
  3. mate — a partner
  4. board — to get on
  5. rush — hurry
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. key — in music
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. key — for a lock
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. mate — to breed
  13. vault — a safe
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. cold — not warm
  19. board — a committee
  20. cold — an illness
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. sharp — clever
  24. mate — a friend

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