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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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. There's no middle ________________.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. present — there
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. rest — a break
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. rest — what's left
  8. present — a gift
  9. game — wild animals
  10. spring — of water
  11. spring — the season
  12. ground — a position
  13. ball — a great time
  14. branch — a division
  15. vault — a safe
  16. ball — a dance
  17. rest — what's left
  18. ground — the earth
  19. game — a match
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. present — the time now
  24. spring — a coil

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