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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. race — humankind
  4. spring — a coil
  5. fall — to drop
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. kid — to tease
  8. hand — in cards
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. kid — child
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. race — the arms race
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. spring — the season
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. fall — the season
  22. spring — of water
  23. hand — help
  24. race — a contest

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