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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. cell — a phone
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. pitch — completely
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. fine — all right
  8. toast — bread
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. drill — army training
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. shower — rain
  13. vault — a safe
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. drill — a practice
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. shower — to wash
  20. toast — the most admired
  21. fine — high quality
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cell — in biology
  24. drill — the tool

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