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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 116 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 ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. spell — a short time
  5. row — to paddle
  6. spell — magic
  7. degree — an amount
  8. rash — hasty
  9. vault — a safe
  10. degree — temperature
  11. bank — of a river
  12. row — a line
  13. scale — size or range
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. spell — letters
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. degree — from a university
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. scale — in music
  21. bank — for money
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. rash — a series
  24. bank — for money

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