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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 120 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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. spring — of water
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. sharp — clever
  5. field — a subject
  6. field — farmland
  7. vault — a safe
  8. spring — a coil
  9. ground — a position
  10. field — for sport
  11. march — the month
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. ground — crushed
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. march — music
  21. march — the month
  22. ground — the earth
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. spring — the season

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