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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. chest — of your body
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. sharp — clever
  6. mark — a grade
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. vault — a safe
  10. mark — a trace
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. chest — a box
  13. object — to protest
  14. capital — a city
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. plane — a tool
  18. object — an aim
  19. capital — money
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. chest — of your body
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. object — a thing
  24. sharp — with an edge

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