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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Did you ________________ the button?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. rush — hurry
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. band — a music group
  7. cold — an illness
  8. band — a ring
  9. cell — in biology
  10. fine — all right
  11. press — newspapers
  12. pop — to visit
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. press — to push
  15. cell — a phone
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. cold — not warm
  18. press — a publisher
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. pop — soda
  21. fine — high quality
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. pop — music
  24. rush — to hurry

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