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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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468
Word bank
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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. craft — boats
  4. pop — to visit
  5. season — in sport
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. pop — soda
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. pop — music
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. vault — a safe
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. bear — the animal
  15. cold — not warm
  16. tear — from crying
  17. season — of the year
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. tear — to rip
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. tear — from crying
  23. snap — to click
  24. craft — a skill

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