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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. content — the amount
  3. spring — a coil
  4. land — a country
  5. vault — a safe
  6. spring — of water
  7. land — ground
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. temple — side of the head
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. spring — the season
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. land — to come down
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. content — happy

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