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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. toast — bread
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. vault — a safe
  5. lean — thin
  6. lean — to bend
  7. court — for sport
  8. object — to protest
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. cell — a phone
  11. object — an aim
  12. rush — hurry
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. field — for sport
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. cell — in biology
  17. court — of a king
  18. object — a thing
  19. field — a subject
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. court — of law
  23. field — farmland
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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