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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 124 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 big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  5. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. stem — of a plant
  2. bat — the animal
  3. dip — to sink
  4. capital — a city
  5. dip — to dunk
  6. roll — a list
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. rule — government
  10. stem — to come from
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. vault — a safe
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. cell — a phone
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rule — a law
  17. cell — in biology
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. roll — a cake
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. capital — money
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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