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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. staff — employees
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. club — for dancing
  6. staff — employees
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. staff — a stick
  9. club — a group
  10. vault — a safe
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bound — certain
  18. bound — obliged
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. bound — tied together
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. club — for golf

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