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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 polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. vault — a safe
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. squash — the sport
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. rock — music
  11. squash — to crush
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cap — a hat
  14. wound — an injury
  15. field — a subject
  16. mark — a trace
  17. cap — a lid
  18. mark — a grade
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. field — for sport
  22. field — farmland
  23. rock — a stone
  24. wound — an injury

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