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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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Word bank
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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: cell · perch · chest · pit · vault · cold

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  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. perch — the fish
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. vault — a safe
  5. pit — in a race
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. cell — a phone
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. chest — a box
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. cold — not warm
  12. chest — of your body
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pit — a hole
  16. chest — of your body
  17. cold — an illness
  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