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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: hide · vault · bound · ground · rock · file · land · racket

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. land — ground
  5. land — a country
  6. ground — the earth
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. bound — certain
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. bound — tied together
  12. ground — a position
  13. file — a tool
  14. land — to come down
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. vault — a safe
  18. file — a document
  19. bound — obliged
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. ground — crushed
  22. file — a line of people
  23. rock — a stone
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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