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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. prune — to trim
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. chest — of your body
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. chest — a box
  8. march — music
  9. row — to paddle
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. craft — boats
  12. march — the month
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — the tool
  15. vault — a safe
  16. craft — a skill
  17. row — a line
  18. drill — a practice
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. march — the month
  21. prune — to trim
  22. chest — of your body
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. season — of the year

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