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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. drill — the tool
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. stem — to come from
  6. kid — to tease
  7. drill — a practice
  8. file — a line of people
  9. file — a tool
  10. fork — in a road
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. drill — army training
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. file — a document
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. vault — a safe
  20. fork — a garden tool
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. kid — child
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  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