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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. chair — a leader
  3. spring — a coil
  4. cap — a hat
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. cap — a lid
  11. cue — a hint
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. cue — for pool
  14. cue — a signal
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. pitch — completely
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. spring — of water
  20. kick — in football
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. cap — of ice
  24. spring — the season

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