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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. present — a gift
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. date — the fruit
  6. degree — an amount
  7. stem — to come from
  8. present — there
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. degree — temperature
  11. sharp — clever
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. degree — from a university
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. present — the time now
  17. game — wild animals
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. dip — to sink
  20. game — a match
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. stem — a stem cell

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