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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pit — in a race
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. track — a song
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. field — a subject
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. spring — the season
  13. mine — for digging
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. lie — to recline
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. field — for sport
  18. track — to keep track
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. spring — of water
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. field — farmland
  23. vault — a safe
  24. track — a path

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