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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. vault — a safe
  3. rest — a break
  4. tube — a container
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. club — for golf
  7. rest — what's left
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. rest — what's left
  10. club — a group
  11. hand — help
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. ground — crushed
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. club — for dancing
  17. ground — a position
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. ground — the earth
  22. hand — in cards
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. date — the fruit

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