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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: bear · cell · date · file · vault · kid · fall · cabinet

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. cell — in biology
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. fall — to drop
  8. file — a line of people
  9. vault — a safe
  10. bear — the animal
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. fall — the season
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bear — the animal
  16. date — the fruit
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. file — a tool
  20. file — a document
  21. kid — to tease
  22. kid — child
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. cabinet — ministers

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