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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. cell — in biology
  9. cell — a phone
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wound — an injury
  14. wound — an injury
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. sharp — clever
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. vault — a safe
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. fine — all right
  22. hand — help
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — in cards

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