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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. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. wax — for sculpting
  3. pass — a permit
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. last — final
  6. file — a document
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. wax — to grow
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. cap — a hat
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. last — to go on
  15. file — a tool
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. cap — a lid
  19. file — a line of people
  20. rule — government
  21. rule — a law
  22. vault — a safe
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. last — finally

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