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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. vault — a safe
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. staff — employees
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. hand — help
  10. spring — of water
  11. staff — a stick
  12. hand — in cards
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. spring — the season
  15. pound — a weight
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. staff — employees
  19. club — a group
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — money
  22. club — for dancing
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. spring — a coil

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