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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: sharp · ruler · row · spring · vault · shower · cold · file

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. shower — to wash
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. ruler — for measuring
  5. row — to paddle
  6. spring — a coil
  7. row — a line
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. spring — the season
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. vault — a safe
  15. sharp — clever
  16. cold — not warm
  17. spring — of water
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. file — a document
  20. shower — rain
  21. file — a line of people
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. cold — an illness
  24. file — a tool

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