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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Have you settled on a ________________?
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. vault — a safe
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. cell — a phone
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. wound — an injury
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — happy
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. mark — a trace
  12. wound — an injury
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. file — a document
  15. mark — a grade
  16. file — a tool
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. date — the fruit
  23. file — a line of people
  24. nail — on a finger

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