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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. race — a contest
  4. face — part of the head
  5. race — humankind
  6. object — to protest
  7. race — the arms race
  8. object — a thing
  9. face — to point toward
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. vault — a safe
  12. face — to confront
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. cold — not warm
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. cold — an illness
  18. object — an aim

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