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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 116 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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. cold — an illness
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. lean — to bend
  6. object — a thing
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. file — a line of people
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. lean — thin
  11. staff — a stick
  12. object — to protest
  13. file — a document
  14. field — a subject
  15. file — a tool
  16. field — farmland
  17. field — for sport
  18. cold — not warm
  19. staff — employees
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. staff — employees
  22. vault — a safe
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. deal — to handle

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