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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. prune — to trim
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. bat — the animal
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. content — happy
  9. wind — moving air
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. game — a match
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. game — wild animals
  21. content — the amount
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. prune — the fruit

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