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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. wound — an injury
  3. press — to push
  4. mate — to breed
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. capital — a city
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. capital — money
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. net — after costs
  12. vault — a safe
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. mate — a partner
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. press — a publisher
  17. fork — in a road
  18. net — in sport
  19. net — for catching
  20. mate — a friend
  21. press — newspapers
  22. wound — an injury
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. leaves — lets stay

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