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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. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — army training
  2. club — for golf
  3. bank — for money
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. march — music
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. game — a match
  8. content — the amount
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. club — for dancing
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. march — the month
  13. club — a group
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. content — happy
  16. drill — a practice
  17. march — the month
  18. game — wild animals
  19. drill — the tool
  20. vault — a safe
  21. bank — for money
  22. shower — rain
  23. shower — to wash
  24. bank — of a river

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