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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  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. toast — the most admired
  2. vault — a safe
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. face — to confront
  6. face — part of the head
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bay — a part of the sea
  13. season — in sport
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. bat — the animal
  17. toast — bread
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. season — of the year
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. stem — to come from
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  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