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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. land — ground
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. spring — a coil
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. spring — the season
  9. wound — an injury
  10. land — a country
  11. pound — a weight
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. vault — a safe
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. land — to come down
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. stand — to bear
  19. spring — of water
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wound — an injury
  22. stem — to come from
  23. wind — moving air
  24. pound — for dogs

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