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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. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. track — to keep track
  3. cap — a lid
  4. fall — to drop
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. cap — of ice
  7. land — to come down
  8. track — a song
  9. land — a country
  10. rock — a stone
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. track — a path
  13. land — ground
  14. kid — child
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. kid — to tease
  17. cap — a hat
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. vault — a safe
  20. fall — the season
  21. fall — to drop
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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