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

Word bank: vault · cold · lean · capital · bay · squash · fall · kick

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. fall — to drop
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. capital — a city
  8. lean — to bend
  9. capital — money
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fall — to drop
  13. lean — thin
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. vault — a safe
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. fall — the season
  21. squash — to crush
  22. bay — a part of the sea
  23. kick — in football
  24. kick — a thrill

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