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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mate · chest · spring · vault · cell · file

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. mate — a partner
  3. chest — of your body
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. mate — to breed
  6. chest — a box
  7. chest — of your body
  8. mate — a friend
  9. file — a line of people
  10. spring — a coil
  11. spring — the season
  12. file — a tool
  13. vault — a safe
  14. file — a document
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. spring — of water
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in biology

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