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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: roll · date · chair · spring · cap · rash · land · vault

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  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. date — on the calendar
  2. cap — a lid
  3. cap — of ice
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. roll — a cake
  6. cap — a hat
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. land — to come down
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. rash — a series
  11. spring — a coil
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. land — ground
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. roll — a list
  17. chair — a leader
  18. spring — of water
  19. spring — the season
  20. vault — a safe
  21. land — a country
  22. date — the fruit
  23. rash — hasty
  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