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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. vault — a safe
  4. fall — the season
  5. bound — obliged
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. march — music
  8. land — ground
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bound — certain
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. land — a country
  15. march — the month
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. march — the month
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. craft — a skill
  20. bound — tied together
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fall — to drop
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. craft — boats

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