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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. mine — for digging
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. game — a match
  7. chest — of your body
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. content — the amount
  10. can — a tin
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. content — happy
  14. vault — a safe
  15. can — a tin
  16. can — to be able to
  17. pop — soda
  18. pop — music
  19. game — wild animals
  20. kick — in football
  21. chest — of your body
  22. pop — to visit
  23. chest — a box
  24. mine — belonging to me

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