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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. game — wild animals
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. track — a path
  7. stem — to come from
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. game — a match
  10. chest — of your body
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — a box
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. vault — a safe
  18. arm — a part of something
  19. spring — of water
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. spring — a coil
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. track — to keep track
  24. track — a song

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