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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. vault — a safe
  4. land — ground
  5. rush — hurry
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. season — of the year
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. season — in sport
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — moving air
  19. land — a country
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. land — to come down
  22. stem — to come from
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. coach — a trainer

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