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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. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. object — an aim
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. net — in sport
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. object — to protest
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. cold — not warm
  13. net — after costs
  14. object — a thing
  15. net — for catching
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. file — a document
  20. file — a line of people
  21. cold — an illness
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. file — a tool

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