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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. spell — letters
  3. game — wild animals
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. chest — of your body
  7. spell — magic
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. mine — for digging
  12. pitch — completely
  13. season — in sport
  14. vault — a safe
  15. rash — hasty
  16. chest — of your body
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. season — of the year
  19. rash — a series
  20. chest — a box
  21. spell — a short time
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. game — a match

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