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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. chest — a box
  6. lean — thin
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. vault — a safe
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. present — the time now
  11. lie — to recline
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. present — a gift
  14. chest — of your body
  15. mine — for digging
  16. root — the cause
  17. band — a music group
  18. band — a ring
  19. chest — of your body
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. root — of a plant
  24. root — of a word

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