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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. What's the difference between broth and ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — a phone
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. cell — in biology
  8. stock — goods
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. chest — of your body
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. stock — shares
  16. last — final
  17. last — to go on
  18. wax — to grow
  19. chest — a box
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. last — finally
  22. chest — of your body
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. stock — a soup base

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