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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. band — a ring
  4. ground — a position
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. degree — temperature
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. degree — from a university
  13. degree — an amount
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. vault — a safe
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. ground — crushed
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. cold — an illness
  22. band — a music group
  23. ground — the earth
  24. rush — hurry

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