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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. fall — to drop
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fall — to drop
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. bank — of a river
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. bank — for money
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. cell — a phone
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. fall — the season
  17. present — a gift
  18. vault — a safe
  19. shower — rain
  20. chest — of your body
  21. bank — for money
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. present — the time now
  24. nail — for a hammer

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