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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. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. ball — a great time
  4. club — for dancing
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. fall — to drop
  8. vault — a safe
  9. fall — to drop
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. shower — rain
  15. plane — a tool
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. fall — the season
  19. club — for golf
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. ball — a dance
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. club — a group
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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