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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 120 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. rush — hurry
  3. spring — a coil
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. perch — the fish
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. net — after costs
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. ground — a position
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. ground — the earth
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. spring — the season
  16. bore — to tire
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. ground — crushed
  19. net — in sport
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. spring — of water
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. net — for catching
  24. rush — to hurry

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