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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: shower · bay · bowl · row · vault · cell · ball · rush

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. rush — hurry
  6. vault — a safe
  7. shower — rain
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. ball — a dance
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cell — in biology
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. row — a line
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. row — to paddle
  24. ball — a great time

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