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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. field — a subject
  6. spring — a coil
  7. hand — help
  8. vault — a safe
  9. swing — in golf
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. chair — a leader
  15. spring — of water
  16. hand — in cards
  17. field — for sport
  18. spring — the season
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. field — farmland
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. swing — music
  24. deal — to handle

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