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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. cell — in biology
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. file — a line of people
  5. root — of a word
  6. vault — a safe
  7. bat — the animal
  8. degree — from a university
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. degree — temperature
  11. root — of a plant
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. file — a tool
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. cell — a phone
  18. degree — an amount
  19. kick — in football
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. file — a document
  23. stem — to come from
  24. root — the cause

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