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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 120 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 · rush · staff · cold · drill · bound · row · trunk

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. bound — tied together
  3. drill — the tool
  4. staff — a stick
  5. bound — certain
  6. cold — an illness
  7. bound — obliged
  8. row — a line
  9. staff — employees
  10. staff — employees
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. drill — a practice
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. row — to paddle
  18. vault — a safe
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. drill — army training
  24. rush — hurry

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