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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 pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. How do you ________________ your surname?
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. capital — money
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. saw — the tool
  6. vault — a safe
  7. spell — letters
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. can — a tin
  11. kick — in football
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. saw — the tool
  14. can — to be able to
  15. capital — a city
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. spell — a short time
  18. game — a match
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. spell — magic
  21. can — a tin
  22. stem — to come from
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. capital — a big letter

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