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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. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. vault — a safe
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — a friend
  7. wound — an injury
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. bound — tied together
  10. pit — a hole
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. wound — an injury
  14. chest — of your body
  15. chest — a box
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. bound — certain
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. pit — in a race
  21. mate — to breed
  22. bound — obliged
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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