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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. vault — a safe
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. field — for sport
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. kid — to tease
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. kid — child
  14. last — final
  15. march — the month
  16. march — music
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. march — the month
  19. last — finally
  20. field — a subject
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. perch — the fish
  23. field — farmland
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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