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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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Word bank
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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: trunk · club · shower · vault · chair · press

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. press — to push
  4. club — for dancing
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. vault — a safe
  7. club — for golf
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. press — newspapers
  10. press — a publisher
  11. club — a group
  12. shower — to wash
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — a leader
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. chair — to sit on

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