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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 120 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. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. squash — to crush
  3. file — a line of people
  4. spring — of water
  5. court — of a king
  6. spring — the season
  7. chest — of your body
  8. vault — a safe
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. key — in music
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. squash — the sport
  13. key — the most important part
  14. spring — a coil
  15. chest — of your body
  16. court — of law
  17. wake — a trail
  18. key — for a lock
  19. file — a tool
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. court — for sport
  22. chest — a box
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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