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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. vault — a safe
  3. spell — a short time
  4. band — a ring
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. sharp — clever
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. chest — of your body
  11. scale — in music
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. scale — size or range
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spell — magic
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. spring — the season
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. chest — a box
  22. spell — letters
  23. chest — of your body
  24. ruler — for measuring

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