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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 120 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: cabinet · shower · tear · vault · nail · cell

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. What do you think of the new ________________?
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. cell — a phone
  3. shower — rain
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. cell — in biology
  7. vault — a safe
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. tear — from crying
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. tear — to rip

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