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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 116 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. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. firm — steady
  3. content — the amount
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. firm — decided
  6. content — happy
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. net — after costs
  10. net — in sport
  11. vault — a safe
  12. net — for catching
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. firm — a company
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. cold — not warm
  19. cold — an illness
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. plane — a tool
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to click

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