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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. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  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. game — a match
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — for digging
  9. vault — a safe
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. shower — to wash
  14. net — after costs
  15. game — wild animals
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. club — for golf
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. club — a group
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. club — for dancing
  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