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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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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: cap · march · arm · last · drill · mate · vault · bulb

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  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. mate — a partner
  3. mate — a friend
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cap — a hat
  6. last — finally
  7. march — the month
  8. cap — a lid
  9. march — the month
  10. drill — a practice
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. mate — to breed
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. last — final
  15. march — music
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. drill — the tool
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. vault — a safe
  20. drill — army training
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cap — of ice
  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