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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 124 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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. scale — size or range
  3. vault — a safe
  4. spell — magic
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. spell — a short time
  8. mate — a friend
  9. scale — in music
  10. spell — letters
  11. mate — to breed
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. bore — to tire
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. last — to go on
  17. mate — a partner
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. last — final
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. bore — to drill
  23. last — finally
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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