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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. net — in sport
  6. net — for catching
  7. degree — from a university
  8. chest — of your body
  9. board — a committee
  10. content — the amount
  11. can — to be able to
  12. degree — an amount
  13. chest — of your body
  14. perch — the fish
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. degree — temperature
  17. net — after costs
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — a tin
  20. content — happy
  21. chest — a box
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. board — to get on
  24. perch — for a bird

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