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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bear — the animal
  4. vault — a safe
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. bound — obliged
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bound — certain
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. field — for sport
  15. fall — the season
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. craft — a skill
  18. fall — to drop
  19. field — a subject
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. field — farmland
  23. chest — a box
  24. craft — boats

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