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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. drill — the tool
  3. firm — decided
  4. fall — to drop
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. drill — a practice
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. fall — to drop
  12. roll — a cake
  13. firm — steady
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. drill — army training
  16. fork — in a road
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. vault — a safe
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. roll — a list
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. fall — the season
  23. firm — a company
  24. shower — rain

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