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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The ________________ took off on time.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. wound — an injury
  3. game — wild animals
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. bound — certain
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. last — final
  9. last — to go on
  10. content — the amount
  11. plane — a tool
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. plane — an aircraft
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. last — finally
  16. game — a match
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. vault — a safe
  19. bound — tied together
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bound — obliged
  22. content — happy
  23. wound — an injury
  24. game — a kind of play

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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