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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The ________________ took off on time.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. spring — a coil
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. spring — the season
  6. rash — a series
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. plane — an aircraft
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. sharp — clever
  11. mine — for digging
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. vault — a safe
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. spring — of water
  17. kick — in football
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. rash — hasty
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. plane — a tool
  24. mine — an explosive

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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