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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 116 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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. spell — letters
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. cold — an illness
  5. cold — not warm
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. spell — magic
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — a safe
  11. fall — to drop
  12. mate — a friend
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. mate — a partner
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. can — a tin
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. spell — a short time
  23. mate — to breed
  24. can — a tin

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