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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. shower — a meteor shower
  5. game — a match
  6. cell — in biology
  7. band — a ring
  8. band — a music group
  9. shower — rain
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. game — wild animals
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. shower — to wash
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. plane — a tool
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. vault — a safe

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