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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: shower · perch · vault · present · scale · capital · hide · ball

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — a gift
  3. capital — a city
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. perch — the fish
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. shower — to wash
  10. ball — a dance
  11. shower — rain
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. present — there
  17. vault — a safe
  18. ball — a great time
  19. scale — size or range
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. scale — in music
  23. capital — money
  24. scale — for weighing

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