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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'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. cue — for pool
  4. cue — a signal
  5. rash — a series
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. vault — a safe
  8. pit — in a race
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. stem — to come from
  17. rash — hasty
  18. stem — of a plant
  19. mine — for digging
  20. pit — a hole
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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