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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 116 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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. capital — a city
  3. last — to go on
  4. mate — a partner
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — a gift
  8. staff — a stick
  9. staff — employees
  10. present — there
  11. last — final
  12. wax — in the ear
  13. mate — a friend
  14. mate — to breed
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. staff — employees
  17. last — finally
  18. wax — to grow
  19. content — videos and posts
  20. vault — a safe
  21. capital — money
  22. content — the amount
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. content — happy

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