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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. spell — a short time
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. spell — letters
  6. capital — money
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. object — an aim
  9. shower — rain
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. capital — a city
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. vault — a safe
  18. object — a thing
  19. spell — magic
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. object — to protest
  23. date — the fruit
  24. leaves — of a tree

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