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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. cap — a lid
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. spring — a coil
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. cap — a hat
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. net — for catching
  11. spring — of water
  12. row — a line
  13. net — in sport
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cold — an illness
  16. vault — a safe
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. row — to paddle
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rock — music
  22. net — after costs
  23. cold — not warm
  24. fan — to cool the air

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