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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 120 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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. temple — side of the head
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — an illness
  5. pound — for dogs
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. wind — moving air
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. root — of a word
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. bulb — for light
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. pound — a weight
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. root — of a plant
  18. bulb — for light
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. chair — a leader
  23. root — the cause
  24. wind — to turn a key

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