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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. ground — crushed
  3. cap — of ice
  4. hand — in cards
  5. vault — a safe
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. swing — in golf
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. swing — music
  10. ground — a position
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. ground — the earth
  13. swing — to play on
  14. hand — help
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wake — a trail
  17. cap — a hat
  18. shower — to wash
  19. shower — rain
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. bass — the fish
  23. bass — low music
  24. cap — a lid

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