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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 116 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: file · cell · ground · vault · wake · rash · deal · stem

  1. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  2. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — a big deal
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. cell — a phone
  5. file — a document
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. stem — to come from
  8. file — a tool
  9. ground — a position
  10. ground — crushed
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. file — a line of people
  13. rash — hasty
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. rash — a series
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. cell — in biology
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. vault — a safe
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. deal — to handle
  23. wake — a trail
  24. ground — the earth

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