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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  3. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. I'll be taking the ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. can — to be able to
  3. current — happening now
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — of your body
  6. tube — the underground
  7. field — a subject
  8. tube — a container
  9. can — a tin
  10. field — farmland
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. chest — a box
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. field — for sport
  18. squash — the sport
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. can — a tin
  21. current — electric
  22. current — of water
  23. squash — to crush
  24. vault — a safe

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