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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. race — a contest
  3. race — the arms race
  4. race — humankind
  5. degree — from a university
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. saw — the tool
  8. degree — temperature
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. hand — in cards
  13. saw — the tool
  14. cell — in biology
  15. hand — help
  16. cell — a phone
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. degree — an amount
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. vault — a safe
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. stem — to come from
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. nail — for a hammer

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