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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 120 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. band — a music group
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. track — a song
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. kick — in football
  13. prune — to trim
  14. band — a ring
  15. track — a path
  16. last — to go on
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. last — finally
  20. prune — to trim
  21. track — to keep track
  22. capital — money
  23. vault — a safe
  24. capital — a city

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