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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 120 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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  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. vault — in gymnastics
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. mine — for digging
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. kick — in football
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bore — to tire
  17. chest — of your body
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — a box
  21. bore — to drill
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bear — the animal
  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