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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: march · chest · spell · vault · shower · hand · bay · key

  1. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — to keep at bay
  2. key — in music
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — in cards
  5. shower — rain
  6. march — the month
  7. march — the month
  8. key — for a lock
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. vault — a safe
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. bay — a part of the sea
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. shower — to wash
  17. spell — letters
  18. hand — help
  19. key — the most important part
  20. spell — a short time
  21. chest — of your body
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. march — music
  24. spell — magic

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