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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. club — for golf
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. ball — a great time
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — from a university
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. degree — temperature
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ball — a dance
  14. chest — of your body
  15. club — for dancing
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. vault — a safe
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. club — a group
  23. degree — an amount
  24. chest — a box

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