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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 116 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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bat — the animal
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. vault — a safe
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. bass — the fish
  12. stem — to come from
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. shower — rain
  15. bass — low music
  16. shower — to wash
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. stem — of a plant

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