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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mark — a grade
  5. mark — a trace
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. hand — help
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. season — of the year
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. vault — a safe
  13. hand — in cards
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. season — in sport
  17. mine — for digging
  18. pitch — completely

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