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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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. last — to go on
  3. vault — a safe
  4. hand — help
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. shower — rain
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. hand — in cards
  11. bore — to tire
  12. prune — to trim
  13. last — finally
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bore — to drill
  16. bound — tied together
  17. last — final
  18. bass — the fish
  19. bound — certain
  20. bound — obliged
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bass — the instrument
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. bass — low music

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