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

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. spring — a coil
  3. ground — a position
  4. spring — of water
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. club — for dancing
  7. ground — the earth
  8. bat — the animal
  9. spring — the season
  10. club — a group
  11. vault — a safe
  12. spell — magic
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. spell — a short time
  15. spell — letters
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. club — for golf
  18. ground — crushed

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