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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 116 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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. vault — a safe
  5. mouse — for a computer
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. lean — thin
  9. capital — a city
  10. last — finally
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. capital — money
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. lean — to bend
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. fork — in a road
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. last — final
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. rule — government
  24. last — to go on

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