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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. chest — of your body
  3. dip — to sink
  4. pass — a permit
  5. last — to go on
  6. drill — army training
  7. vault — a safe
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. last — final
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. snap — to click
  13. drill — the tool
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. rock — a stone
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. last — finally
  23. rock — to move gently
  24. drill — a practice

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