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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. row — a line
  5. cap — a lid
  6. lean — thin
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. spring — a coil
  9. vault — a safe
  10. cap — a hat
  11. spring — of water
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. scale — in music
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. march — music
  17. scale — size or range
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — the season
  20. march — the month
  21. row — to paddle
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. march — the month
  24. cap — of ice

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