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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. game — a match
  3. vault — a safe
  4. season — of the year
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. game — wild animals
  7. root — of a word
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. lie — to recline
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. root — of a plant
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. dip — to sink
  14. season — in sport
  15. ball — a great time
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. ball — a dance
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. wind — moving air
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. wind — moving air
  24. root — the cause

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