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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. rest — a break
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. hand — in cards
  5. lean — thin
  6. rest — what's left
  7. vault — a safe
  8. hand — help
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. tube — the underground
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. lean — to bend
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. tube — a container
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. rest — what's left
  24. pitcher — a jug

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