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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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468
Word bank
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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. mate — a partner
  3. tube — the underground
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rest — a break
  6. mate — to breed
  7. spring — a coil
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. rest — what's left
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — in biology
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. vault — a safe
  18. tube — a container
  19. mate — a friend
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. spring — the season
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. cell — a phone
  24. spring — of water

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