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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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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. spring — a coil
  3. squash — the sport
  4. spring — of water
  5. drill — the tool
  6. wax — in the ear
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. last — finally
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. last — to go on
  14. squash — to crush
  15. wax — to grow
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. safe — a strongbox
  19. spring — the season
  20. drill — a practice
  21. drill — army training
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. vault — a safe
  24. chest — of your body

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