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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. staff — a stick
  3. staff — employees
  4. branch — a division
  5. chest — of your body
  6. charge — in control
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. charge — electricity
  10. staff — employees
  11. degree — temperature
  12. chest — a box
  13. chest — of your body
  14. degree — from a university
  15. net — after costs
  16. net — for catching
  17. plane — a tool
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. degree — an amount
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. net — in sport
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. charge — a price

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