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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. mark — a trace
  4. fall — to drop
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. chest — of your body
  7. shower — rain
  8. fall — to drop
  9. shower — to wash
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. cap — a hat
  12. row — a line
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. cap — a lid
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. cap — of ice
  17. mark — a grade
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. row — to paddle
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. chest — a box
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bay — to keep at bay
  24. fall — the season

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