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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. When was this ________________ built?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. tear — from crying
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. staff — employees
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. staff — employees
  8. vault — a safe
  9. staff — a stick
  10. ball — a great time
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. row — to paddle
  13. pass — a permit
  14. tear — from crying
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. temple — a place of worship
  17. tear — to rip
  18. row — a line
  19. capital — a city
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. capital — money
  24. temple — side 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