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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. spring — of water
  4. roll — a cake
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. vault — a safe
  9. spring — the season
  10. spring — a coil
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. roll — a list
  14. face — to point toward
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. face — part of the head
  17. mate — a friend
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. face — to confront
  20. bear — the animal
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. bear — the animal
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. mate — to breed

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