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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. last — to go on
  3. cap — a lid
  4. prune — to trim
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. row — a line
  7. last — final
  8. spring — a coil
  9. ruler — a monarch
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. spring — of water
  12. row — to paddle
  13. last — finally
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cell — in biology
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. prune — to trim
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. cell — a phone
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. vault — a safe
  22. cap — a hat
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. cell — in a prison

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