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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. I'll be taking the ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. tube — the underground
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. pop — music
  7. ball — a great time
  8. hand — help
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. hand — in cards
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. ball — a dance
  18. cell — a phone
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. vault — a safe
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cell — in biology
  23. tube — a container
  24. mine — for digging

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