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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. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. fork — in a road
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. staff — employees
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. scale — in music
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. staff — a stick
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. vault — a safe
  13. shower — rain
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. staff — employees
  16. scale — size or range
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. chest — of your body
  21. shower — to wash
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. tear — from crying

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