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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. vault — a safe
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. root — the cause
  6. cue — for pool
  7. file — a line of people
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. swing — in golf
  10. cue — a signal
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rock — a stone
  13. mark — a trace
  14. swing — to play on
  15. mark — a grade
  16. swing — music
  17. root — of a word
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. cue — a hint
  20. root — of a plant
  21. cold — not warm
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. file — a document
  24. file — a tool

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