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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. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. vault — a safe
  3. chest — a box
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. net — for catching
  8. bear — the animal
  9. wax — to grow
  10. spring — the season
  11. chest — of your body
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. land — to come down
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. net — after costs
  16. land — a country
  17. bear — the animal
  18. net — in sport
  19. stem — to come from
  20. land — ground
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. spring — a coil
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. spring — of water

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