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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. vault — a safe
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. present — the time now
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — the tool
  7. present — there
  8. present — a gift
  9. wave — of the sea
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. march — music
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. spring — a coil
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. spring — the season
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. drill — army training
  20. march — the month
  21. march — the month
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. spring — of water
  24. date — the fruit

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