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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. tear — to rip
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. face — to confront
  9. pitch — completely
  10. tear — from crying
  11. cell — in biology
  12. face — part of the head
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. face — to point toward
  19. tear — from crying
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. snap — to click
  23. cell — a phone
  24. vault — a safe

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