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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 116 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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. game — wild animals
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. content — happy
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. content — the amount
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. kid — child
  13. bear — the animal
  14. game — a match
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. vault — a safe
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. bear — the animal
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. pitch — completely
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. mine — for digging

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