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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. mine — for digging
  3. face — to confront
  4. face — to point toward
  5. object — to protest
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. present — a gift
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. vault — a safe
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. field — farmland
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. field — a subject
  16. field — for sport
  17. present — there
  18. present — the time now
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. object — an aim
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. face — part of the head
  23. object — a thing
  24. plane — a 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