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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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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 fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. shower — to wash
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. trunk — of an elephant
  5. bark — to shout
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. foot — the bottom
  8. foot — a measure
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. shower — rain
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. file — a document
  13. vault — a safe
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. file — a line of people
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. file — a tool
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. bass — low music

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