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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. rest — what's left
  4. ground — a position
  5. mine — for digging
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. staff — employees
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pop — soda
  10. ground — crushed
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. shower — rain
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. rest — what's left
  15. prune — to trim
  16. staff — a stick
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. ground — the earth
  19. staff — employees
  20. pop — music
  21. rest — a break
  22. vault — a safe
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. shower — to wash

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