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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. file — a line of people
  3. season — in sport
  4. file — a document
  5. vault — a safe
  6. content — happy
  7. chest — a box
  8. chest — of your body
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — to tease
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. fine — all right
  13. mug — to rob
  14. chest — of your body
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. mug — a cup
  17. mug — a face
  18. kid — child
  19. fine — high quality
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. content — the amount
  22. file — a tool
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. season — of the year

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