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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. fall — to drop
  4. band — a music group
  5. vault — a safe
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. sharp — clever
  9. deal — to handle
  10. spring — the season
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. spring — of water
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. band — a ring
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. fall — the season
  24. spring — a coil

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