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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. shower — rain
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. kid — child
  6. kid — to tease
  7. spring — the season
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. spring — of water
  10. wound — an injury
  11. vault — a safe
  12. firm — a company
  13. spring — a coil
  14. firm — decided
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — an illness
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. shower — to wash
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. firm — steady
  24. prune — to trim

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