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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. face — to point toward
  4. drill — a practice
  5. vault — a safe
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. fall — the season
  9. drill — army training
  10. fall — to drop
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. date — the fruit
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. fall — to drop
  19. face — to confront
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. drill — the tool
  23. tube — the underground
  24. face — part of the head

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