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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. I can't ________________ this cold.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  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. bore — gave birth
  3. cap — a hat
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a match
  6. bore — to tire
  7. file — a tool
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. cap — a lid
  11. club — for golf
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. file — a document
  14. stand — to bear
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. bore — to drill
  17. club — a group
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. file — a line of people
  20. stem — to come from
  21. club — for dancing
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. cap — of ice
  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