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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  9. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. charge — a price
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. land — ground
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. bat — the animal
  8. craft — boats
  9. craft — a skill
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. shower — to wash
  12. shower — rain
  13. charge — in control
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. land — to come down
  17. vault — a safe
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. land — a country
  20. degree — an amount
  21. degree — from a university
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. degree — temperature
  24. charge — electricity

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