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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. fall — to drop
  4. lean — thin
  5. stock — goods
  6. kid — child
  7. bound — certain
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. fall — to drop
  12. lean — to bend
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. toast — bread
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. bound — obliged
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. bound — tied together
  19. stock — shares
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. plane — a tool
  23. kid — to tease
  24. fall — the season

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