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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. kid — to tease
  3. vault — a safe
  4. bass — the fish
  5. squash — to crush
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. drill — the tool
  10. drill — a practice
  11. game — wild animals
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. drill — army training
  17. kid — child
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. squash — the sport
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bat — the animal
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. bass — low music
  24. squash — the vegetable

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