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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. row — a line
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. chest — of your body
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. fork — in a road
  8. last — final
  9. chest — a box
  10. content — happy
  11. vault — a safe
  12. content — the amount
  13. ruler — a monarch
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. last — finally
  17. last — to go on
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. row — to paddle
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. pop — soda
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. pop — to visit

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