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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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. When was this ________________ built?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. shower — rain
  7. pop — soda
  8. shower — to wash
  9. court — of a king
  10. court — of law
  11. fall — to drop
  12. vault — a safe
  13. court — for sport
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. fall — the season
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. pop — to visit
  18. swing — to play on
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. swing — in golf
  21. fall — to drop
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. swing — music
  24. straw — dry grass

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