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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. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. rest — a break
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — a practice
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. fall — the season
  7. rest — what's left
  8. chair — a leader
  9. fall — to drop
  10. game — a match
  11. vault — a safe
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. game — wild animals
  14. race — humankind
  15. fall — to drop
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. race — a contest
  18. roll — a list
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. rest — what's left
  22. drill — the tool
  23. roll — a cake
  24. race — the arms race

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