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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. tear — to rip
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. field — for sport
  5. vault — a safe
  6. tear — from crying
  7. cell — a phone
  8. track — a path
  9. cell — in biology
  10. field — farmland
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. track — a song
  13. net — for catching
  14. tube — a container
  15. net — in sport
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. track — to keep track
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. field — a subject
  22. tube — the underground
  23. tear — from crying
  24. net — after costs

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