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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. staff — a stick
  3. wound — an injury
  4. present — the time now
  5. present — there
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. spell — a short time
  8. staff — employees
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. spell — magic
  12. spell — letters
  13. kid — to tease
  14. vault — a safe
  15. wound — an injury
  16. lie — to recline
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. present — a gift
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. staff — employees
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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