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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 116 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. bound — certain
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. content — happy
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. bound — tied together
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bound — obliged
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. kick — in football
  15. content — the amount
  16. capital — money
  17. bat — the animal
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. capital — a city

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