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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. That was ________________ to happen.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. shower — to wash
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. bound — certain
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. stock — a soup base
  8. file — a tool
  9. wind — moving air
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. stock — goods
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. shower — rain
  15. file — a document
  16. file — a line of people
  17. bound — tied together
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. stock — shares
  20. wind — moving air
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. pound — a weight
  23. bound — obliged
  24. calf — a young animal

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