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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: foot · game · vault · ball · straw · cold · ground · can

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  11. The King held a masked ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. cold — an illness
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. foot — a measure
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. can — to be able to
  8. vault — a safe
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. can — a tin
  11. ball — a dance
  12. ball — a great time
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. ground — crushed
  16. can — a tin
  17. game — a match
  18. cold — not warm
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. game — wild animals
  23. ground — the earth
  24. ground — a position

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