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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 ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. band — a ring
  3. shower — to wash
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. shower — rain
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. mine — for digging
  10. squash — to crush
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. rash — a series
  15. band — a music group
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. rash — hasty
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. vault — a safe
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. squash — the sport
  24. pitcher — in baseball

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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