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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. saw — the tool
  3. saw — the tool
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. chest — of your body
  6. calf — of the leg
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. vault — a safe
  16. stick — to attach or keep to
  17. hand — in cards
  18. chest — of your body
  19. fork — in a road
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. fork — to eat with
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. chest — a box

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