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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bound — tied together
  7. lean — thin
  8. cold — an illness
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. squash — the sport
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. cold — not warm
  13. band — a ring
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bound — certain
  17. band — a music group
  18. lean — to bend
  19. bound — obliged
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. cell — a phone
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. cell — in biology

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