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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. mug — a face
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. roll — a cake
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. field — farmland
  8. vault — a safe
  9. bat — the animal
  10. wind — moving air
  11. track — a path
  12. field — a subject
  13. mug — a cup
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. field — for sport
  16. track — to keep track
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. mug — to rob
  19. roll — a list
  20. track — a song
  21. wind — moving air
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. bat — for baseball

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