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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 120 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: stick · lie · mine · pit · cold · vault · root · content

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cold — not warm
  4. cold — an illness
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. pit — in a race
  9. root — of a word
  10. content — the amount
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. pit — a hole
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. root — of a plant
  15. content — happy
  16. lie — to recline
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. root — the cause
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. vault — a safe
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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