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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. club — for dancing
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. spring — the season
  5. tube — the underground
  6. cold — not warm
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. saw — the tool
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. saw — the tool
  12. club — a group
  13. vault — a safe
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cold — an illness
  18. club — for golf
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. tube — a container
  22. spring — of water
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. spring — a coil

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