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

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. cell — a phone
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. land — to come down
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. vault — a safe
  10. land — a country
  11. cell — in biology
  12. bear — the animal
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. field — farmland
  16. bear — the animal
  17. field — a subject
  18. field — for sport

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