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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. vault — a safe
  3. lie — to recline
  4. club — for golf
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. cold — an illness
  11. ground — the earth
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. club — a group
  15. kid — child
  16. firm — steady
  17. firm — a company
  18. ground — crushed
  19. ground — a position
  20. kid — to tease
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. club — for dancing
  23. cold — not warm
  24. lie — an untruth

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