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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. vault — a safe
  3. chest — of your body
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. track — to keep track
  6. chest — of your body
  7. can — a tin
  8. chest — a box
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. can — to be able to
  16. bat — the animal
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. track — a song
  20. fork — in a road
  21. can — a tin
  22. track — a path
  23. net — after costs
  24. net — for catching

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