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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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. cap — of ice
  3. cap — a lid
  4. tear — from crying
  5. last — finally
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. tear — from crying
  8. capital — a city
  9. last — final
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. tear — to rip
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — the tool
  15. capital — money
  16. cap — a hat
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. drill — a practice
  22. sharp — clever
  23. last — to go on
  24. lash — an eyelash

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