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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 120 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: vault · stock · shower · foot · squash · rash · fan · hide

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. shower — rain
  4. rash — a series
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. stock — goods
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. vault — a safe
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. squash — to crush
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. foot — a measure
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. squash — the sport
  21. stock — shares
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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