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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. game — wild animals
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. mark — a trace
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. fine — high quality
  8. scale — size or range
  9. fine — all right
  10. scale — in music
  11. net — after costs
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. row — a line
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. net — in sport
  16. mark — a grade
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. row — to paddle
  21. game — a match
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. net — for catching
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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