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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: vault · track · shower · dip · cold · bay

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. My mare is ________________ in color.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. cold — not warm
  5. track — a path
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. cold — an illness
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. shower — to wash
  11. dip — to sink
  12. track — to keep track
  13. shower — rain
  14. vault — a safe
  15. track — a song
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. bay — a horse colour
  18. vault — in gymnastics

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