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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. saw — the tool
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. vault — a safe
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. rush — hurry
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. court — of a king
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. hand — help
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. season — in sport
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. court — for sport
  21. season — of the year
  22. court — of law
  23. saw — the tool
  24. hand — in cards

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