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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. vault — a safe
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. land — to come down
  5. fall — the season
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. mug — a face
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fall — to drop
  10. land — a country
  11. wax — to grow
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. content — happy
  14. land — ground
  15. foot — a measure
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. foot — part of the body
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. chest — of your body
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. mug — a cup
  22. content — the amount
  23. mug — to rob
  24. chest — a box

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