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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. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. calf — a young animal
  3. mate — to breed
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. cell — a phone
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mate — a partner
  10. cell — in biology
  11. vault — a safe
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. pound — a weight
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. chest — a box
  17. mate — a friend
  18. rash — hasty
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. scale — in music
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. scale — size or range
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. scale — for weighing

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