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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Where did you ________________ them?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. straw — to clutch at straws
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. vault — a safe
  5. mug — a face
  6. race — the arms race
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. mug — to rob
  11. bound — obliged
  12. band — a ring
  13. race — a contest
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. mug — a cup
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. race — humankind
  18. bound — tied together
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. bound — certain
  21. squash — the sport
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. squash — to crush
  24. band — a music group

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