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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. cell — in biology
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. net — in sport
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. vault — a safe
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. net — after costs
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. net — for catching
  12. field — farmland
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. field — for sport
  15. field — a subject
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. dip — to sink
  22. cell — a phone
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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