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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  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. game — a match
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. shower — rain
  4. swing — in golf
  5. stem — to come from
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. mate — a friend
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. wind — moving air
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. mate — a partner
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. game — wild animals
  17. mate — to breed
  18. swing — to play on
  19. shower — to wash
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. swing — music
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. wind — moving air
  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