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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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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: dip · file · cue · spring · shower · vault · cold · march

  1. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — rain
  2. cue — a signal
  3. file — a document
  4. cold — not warm
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. file — a line of people
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. file — a tool
  10. cold — an illness
  11. spring — of water
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. dip — to sink
  14. shower — to wash
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. march — the month
  17. vault — a safe
  18. spring — the season
  19. cue — for pool
  20. march — music
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. spring — a coil
  23. march — the month
  24. cue — a hint

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