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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. drill — the tool
  3. file — a line of people
  4. charge — a price
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. key — the most important part
  7. cap — a hat
  8. vault — a safe
  9. key — for a lock
  10. charge — electricity
  11. cap — of ice
  12. drill — army training
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. key — in music
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. cap — a lid
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. kid — child
  21. file — a tool
  22. charge — in control
  23. file — a document
  24. drill — a practice

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