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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. swing — to play on
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. kid — child
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. last — to go on
  7. vault — a safe
  8. kid — to tease
  9. race — humankind
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. capital — a big letter
  12. deal — to handle
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. swing — in golf
  15. race — the arms race
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. last — final
  18. swing — music
  19. capital — money
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. temple — a place of worship
  23. race — a contest
  24. capital — a city

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