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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. pass — a permit
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. capital — money
  5. cap — a hat
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. fall — the season
  8. cap — a lid
  9. chip — to eat
  10. vault — a safe
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. capital — a city
  15. cold — not warm
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. chip — for betting
  18. fall — to drop
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. cap — of ice
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. fall — to drop
  23. deal — to handle
  24. pass — to succeed

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