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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 kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. last — final
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. season — of the year
  5. root — of a word
  6. present — a gift
  7. cap — a hat
  8. present — there
  9. wind — moving air
  10. root — the cause
  11. last — to go on
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. present — the time now
  14. root — of a plant
  15. scale — in music
  16. cap — a lid
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. vault — a safe
  19. wind — moving air
  20. season — in sport
  21. last — finally
  22. cap — of ice
  23. scale — size or range
  24. wind — to turn a key

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