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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. vault — a safe
  4. fine — high quality
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. race — humankind
  9. ball — a dance
  10. race — the arms race
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. cold — not warm
  13. race — a contest
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. bark — to shout
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. branch — a division
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. scale — in music
  22. cold — an illness
  23. scale — size or range
  24. ball — a great time

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