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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. fine — all right
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. fine — high quality
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. mate — a partner
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. ball — a great time
  11. ball — a dance
  12. wind — moving air
  13. trunk — of an elephant
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. bat — the animal
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wound — an injury
  21. vault — a safe
  22. mate — a friend
  23. wound — an injury
  24. mate — to breed

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