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

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. chest — a box
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. band — a music group
  12. pop — music
  13. vault — a safe
  14. pop — to visit
  15. chest — of your body
  16. last — finally
  17. last — final
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. chest — of your body
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. wake — a trail
  23. pop — soda
  24. last — to go on

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