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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. band — a ring
  3. stem — to come from
  4. vault — a safe
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. spring — a coil
  7. chest — of your body
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. capital — a city
  12. chest — a box
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. chest — of your body
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. spring — the season
  20. capital — money
  21. spring — of water
  22. band — a music group
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. stem — a stem cell

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