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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. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. cell — a phone
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. court — of a king
  7. object — to protest
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. court — of law
  10. object — a thing
  11. shower — rain
  12. object — an aim
  13. shower — to wash
  14. mate — a friend
  15. mate — to breed
  16. prune — to trim
  17. court — for sport
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. vault — a safe
  21. prune — to trim
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. cell — in biology

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