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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. craft — boats
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. craft — a handicraft
  5. craft — a skill
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — to drop
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. kid — to tease
  10. fall — the season
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. cell — in biology
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. vault — a safe
  15. toast — bread
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. rash — a series
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. kid — child
  21. temple — side of the head
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. rash — hasty
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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