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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: chest · wind · vault · band · bound · board · ball · fall

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. ball — a round shape
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. bound — tied together
  6. band — a ring
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fall — the season
  10. bound — certain
  11. wind — moving air
  12. chest — a box
  13. board — to get on
  14. ball — a great time
  15. ball — a dance
  16. band — a music group
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. board — a committee
  20. fall — to drop
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. fall — to drop
  23. vault — a safe
  24. chest — of your body

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