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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. capital — money
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. rock — music
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. cell — in biology
  9. march — the month
  10. vault — a safe
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. rush — hurry
  13. march — the month
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. cell — a phone
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. march — music
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. capital — a city
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. capital — a big letter

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