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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 120 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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. club — for golf
  3. march — music
  4. chest — of your body
  5. club — for dancing
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. march — the month
  8. club — a group
  9. chest — a box
  10. march — the month
  11. cold — an illness
  12. prune — to trim
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. vault — a safe
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cold — not warm
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. chest — of your body
  24. deal — an agreement

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