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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. What do you think of the new ________________?
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. squash — the sport
  4. chest — of your body
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. bat — the animal
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. chest — of your body
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. chest — a box
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. racket — a loud noise
  19. vault — a safe
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. squash — to crush
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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