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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. pop — to visit
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. drill — a practice
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. plane — a tool
  9. drill — the tool
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. vault — a safe
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. drill — army training
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. swing — to play on
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. swing — in golf
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pop — music
  24. swing — music

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