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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. vault — a safe
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. cell — a phone
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. scale — size or range
  9. fine — high quality
  10. scale — in music
  11. snap — to click
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. wake — a trail
  14. present — a gift
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. cell — in biology
  17. present — there
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. fine — all right
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. present — the time now

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