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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 120 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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Word bank
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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cold — not warm
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. court — of law
  5. court — of a king
  6. fall — to drop
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cold — an illness
  14. scale — size or range
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. last — to go on
  17. scale — in music
  18. last — finally
  19. last — final
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fall — to drop
  23. fall — the season
  24. court — for sport

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