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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. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ________________ market has crashed.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. stock — shares
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. band — a music group
  7. cell — a phone
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. cell — in biology
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. ball — a great time
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. ball — a dance
  14. band — a ring
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — a safe
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. stock — a soup base
  19. shower — to wash
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. shower — rain
  22. stock — goods
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. ball — a round shape

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