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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. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. tear — from crying
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. tear — to rip
  7. rush — hurry
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. scale — in music
  12. capital — a city
  13. fork — in a road
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. tear — from crying
  17. ball — a dance
  18. scale — size or range
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. capital — money
  21. vault — a safe
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. fork — a garden tool

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