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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. We're on a ________________ here.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. roll — on a roll
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. cold — an illness
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. cold — not warm
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. roll — a list
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. chest — a box
  22. vault — a safe
  23. roll — a cake
  24. cold — the Cold War

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