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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. mug — to rob
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. mug — a face
  6. wax — for sculpting
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. rest — what's left
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. wax — to grow
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. rest — a break
  16. capital — a city
  17. capital — money
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bat — the animal
  21. mug — a cup
  22. vault — a safe
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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