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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. net — in sport
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. band — a music group
  5. ground — the earth
  6. content — happy
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wax — to grow
  9. hand — help
  10. jam — to spread on bread
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. content — the amount
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. ground — crushed
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. net — for catching
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. ground — a position
  20. net — after costs
  21. hand — in cards
  22. vault — a safe
  23. band — a ring
  24. jam — a tight spot

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