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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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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. ground — crushed
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. net — for catching
  9. row — a line
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cold — an illness
  12. ground — the earth
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — a contest
  15. net — in sport
  16. net — after costs
  17. row — to paddle
  18. vault — a safe
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — not warm
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. ground — a position
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. race — humankind

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