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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. net — for catching
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bound — certain
  8. vault — a safe
  9. bound — obliged
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — an illness
  12. mark — a trace
  13. craft — boats
  14. craft — a skill
  15. cold — not warm
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. net — after costs
  18. craft — a handicraft
  19. bound — tied together
  20. tear — to rip
  21. net — in sport
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. tear — from crying
  24. straw — a straw man

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