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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The ball is in your ________________.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. pop — to visit
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. shower — to wash
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. kid — child
  8. scale — in music
  9. vault — a safe
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. pop — soda
  13. court — of law
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. court — of a king
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. scale — size or range
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. kid — to tease
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. court — for sport
  23. shower — rain
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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