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

Word bank: shower · sharp · stem · deal · race · vault

  1. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. race — humankind
  2. sharp — clever
  3. stem — to come from
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. shower — rain
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. vault — a safe
  8. shower — to wash
  9. race — a contest
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. race — the arms race
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. deal — to handle
  18. vault — an arched ceiling

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