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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. degree — an amount
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. ball — a great time
  5. vault — a safe
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. file — a tool
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. degree — temperature
  10. fall — the season
  11. degree — from a university
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. fall — to drop
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. fall — to drop
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. file — a document
  24. ball — a dance

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