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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. content — the amount
  3. hand — in cards
  4. saw — the tool
  5. deal — to handle
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. content — happy
  10. saw — the tool
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. hand — help
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — for digging
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. row — to paddle
  24. row — a line

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