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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. present — a gift
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — music
  5. cell — a phone
  6. present — the time now
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. pop — to visit
  9. tear — from crying
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — a safe
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — to rip
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. cell — in biology
  17. deal — to handle
  18. deal — a big deal

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