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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 116 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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. band — a ring
  3. ground — crushed
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. band — a music group
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. shower — rain
  10. pit — a hole
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cell — in biology
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. last — finally
  17. cell — a phone
  18. last — to go on
  19. pit — in a race
  20. ground — the earth
  21. vault — a safe
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. ground — a position

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