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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 water is too ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  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. cold — not warm
  2. chest — of your body
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. chest — of your body
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. perch — the fish
  8. vault — a safe
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. chest — a box
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. jam — a tight spot
  23. perch — for a bird
  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