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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. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. When was this ________________ built?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  23. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — a garden tool
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lie — to recline
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. content — the amount
  9. wake — a trail
  10. fork — in a road
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. scale — size or range
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. scale — in music
  18. content — happy
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. vault — a safe
  22. temple — side of the head
  23. fork — to eat with
  24. scale — for weighing

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