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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. wind — moving air
  4. rash — a series
  5. spring — the season
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. bay — a part of the sea
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. wind — moving air
  11. plane — a tool
  12. content — the amount
  13. vault — a safe
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. content — happy
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. spring — of water
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. rash — hasty
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. spring — a coil

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