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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. fall — to drop
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. rest — what's left
  5. toast — the most admired
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. fall — the season
  8. toast — bread
  9. land — a country
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. kid — to tease
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. cold — not warm
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. rest — what's left
  18. fall — to drop
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. rest — a break
  21. land — ground
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. land — to come down
  24. vault — a safe

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