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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pound — to hit hard
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. rash — a series
  6. land — a country
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. drill — army training
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. drill — the tool
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. drill — a practice
  14. land — to come down
  15. land — ground
  16. rash — hasty
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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