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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. last — finally
  3. club — a group
  4. last — final
  5. spring — of water
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. vault — a safe
  9. cap — of ice
  10. rock — music
  11. rock — a stone
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. spring — the season
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. last — to go on
  19. club — for dancing
  20. cap — a lid
  21. spring — a coil
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. club — for golf
  24. straw — a straw man

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