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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 120 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. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. ground — crushed
  3. wound — an injury
  4. ground — the earth
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. root — of a plant
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. root — the cause
  13. cold — an illness
  14. game — wild animals
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. cold — not warm
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. root — of a word
  19. wound — an injury
  20. ground — a position
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. safe — out of danger

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