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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 116 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. last — final
  3. land — to come down
  4. fall — the season
  5. scale — in music
  6. fall — to drop
  7. land — ground
  8. last — to go on
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. land — a country
  14. degree — an amount
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. rule — government
  17. fall — to drop
  18. last — finally
  19. rule — a law
  20. vault — a safe
  21. degree — temperature
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. degree — from a university
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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