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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — the season
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. face — part of the head
  9. club — a group
  10. face — to confront
  11. face — to point toward
  12. vault — a safe
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. fall — to drop
  16. club — for dancing
  17. club — for golf
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. bat — the animal
  20. sharp — clever
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. prune — to trim
  24. bat — in an idiom

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