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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. scale — in music
  6. fine — a penalty
  7. chair — a leader
  8. fine — all right
  9. row — to paddle
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. fine — high quality
  13. mine — for digging
  14. wake — a trail
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. row — a line
  17. vault — a safe
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fall — to drop
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. fall — the season
  22. scale — size or range
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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