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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. sharp — clever
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. bore — to tire
  6. wind — moving air
  7. prune — to trim
  8. pop — soda
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. pop — music
  13. vault — a safe
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. wind — moving air
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. bore — to drill
  19. pop — to visit
  20. plane — a tool
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. plane — in geometry

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