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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. bat — the animal
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. fine — all right
  5. mark — a grade
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. cold — an illness
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. mark — a trace
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. cold — not warm
  14. pop — soda
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. fine — high quality
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. vault — a safe
  19. ground — the earth
  20. ground — crushed
  21. pop — to visit
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. ground — a position

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