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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. mate — a friend
  3. mate — a partner
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. file — a tool
  6. shower — to wash
  7. shower — rain
  8. pop — music
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. mate — to breed
  11. pop — to visit
  12. rush — hurry
  13. nail — on a finger
  14. vault — a safe
  15. file — a document
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. pop — soda
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. file — a line of people
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. ruler — for measuring

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