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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. vault — a safe
  5. pound — a weight
  6. snap — to click
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. spring — of water
  13. tube — the underground
  14. spring — the season
  15. spring — a coil
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. tube — a container
  24. mine — for digging

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