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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 still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. shower — rain
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. shower — to wash
  5. wound — an injury
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. bear — the animal
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. bound — obliged
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. fall — the season
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. bound — certain
  20. fall — to drop
  21. foot — a measure
  22. band — a music group
  23. vault — a safe
  24. fall — to drop

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