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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. lean — to bend
  3. vault — a safe
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. lean — thin
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. content — happy
  8. key — for a lock
  9. pit — a hole
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. wake — a trail
  14. ground — the earth
  15. key — in music
  16. key — the most important part
  17. board — a committee
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. board — to get on
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. ground — a position
  22. ground — crushed
  23. pit — in a race
  24. content — videos and posts

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