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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. fall — to drop
  4. fall — to drop
  5. charge — a price
  6. fine — all right
  7. game — wild animals
  8. drill — army training
  9. charge — electricity
  10. game — a match
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. hand — help
  13. fine — high quality
  14. vault — a safe
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. drill — the tool
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. fall — the season
  19. charge — in control
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. drill — a practice
  22. hand — in cards
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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