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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. key — for a lock
  3. present — a gift
  4. race — a contest
  5. wind — moving air
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. key — in music
  9. vault — a safe
  10. last — final
  11. key — the most important part
  12. wind — moving air
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. last — finally
  18. race — the arms race
  19. stand — to bear
  20. last — to go on
  21. present — there
  22. race — humankind
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. temple — a place of worship

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