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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. land — to come down
  3. wound — an injury
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. land — ground
  7. march — music
  8. wound — an injury
  9. march — the month
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bore — to drill
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. vault — a safe
  14. wind — moving air
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. land — a country
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. bore — to tire
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. march — the month

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