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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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. shower — rain
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. current — of water
  8. current — electric
  9. band — a ring
  10. chip — for betting
  11. shower — to wash
  12. vault — a safe
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. band — a music group
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. fork — in a road
  17. clip — for paper
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. current — happening now
  20. chip — to eat
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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