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

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. hand — in cards
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. cell — in biology
  9. wound — an injury
  10. cell — a phone
  11. shower — rain
  12. vault — a safe
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. rash — hasty
  15. wound — an injury
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. shower — to wash
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. hand — help
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. rash — a series
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. fork — in a road

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