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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: toast · fork · vault · file · drill · face · date · jam

  1. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — bread
  2. face — to point toward
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. file — a line of people
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. drill — army training
  9. jam — to spread on bread
  10. drill — a practice
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. face — to confront
  14. toast — the most admired
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. file — a document
  18. face — part of the head
  19. file — a tool
  20. drill — the tool
  21. date — the fruit
  22. fork — in a road
  23. vault — a safe
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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