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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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468
Word bank
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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. land — ground
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. hand — in cards
  6. tube — a container
  7. land — to come down
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. tube — the underground
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. land — a country
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. vault — a safe
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. foot — a measure
  24. foot — part of the body

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