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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. toast — bread
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. fall — the season
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. clip — a video
  9. fall — to drop
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. race — humankind
  12. clip — for paper
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. foot — a measure
  16. rush — hurry
  17. vault — a safe
  18. fall — to drop
  19. race — a contest
  20. rash — a series
  21. rash — hasty
  22. race — the arms race
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. clip — to cut

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