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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 116 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. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The ball is in your ________________.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. band — a ring
  3. cell — in biology
  4. scale — size or range
  5. court — of law
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. cell — a phone
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. court — for sport
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. lean — thin
  19. scale — in music
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. vault — a safe
  22. lean — to bend
  23. band — a music group
  24. court — of a king

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