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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 · kid · degree · roll · straw · vault · deal · present

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. shower — to wash
  6. shower — rain
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. kid — child
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. degree — an amount
  13. present — a gift
  14. degree — temperature
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. present — the time now
  17. roll — a list
  18. degree — from a university
  19. vault — a safe
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. deal — to handle
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. kid — to tease
  24. present — there

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