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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: vault · race · shower · face · toast · ball · pit · land

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. land — a country
  3. race — the arms race
  4. toast — bread
  5. race — humankind
  6. pit — a hole
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. shower — to wash
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. face — to confront
  11. land — to come down
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. vault — a safe
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. race — a contest
  17. ball — a great time
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. shower — rain
  20. ball — a dance
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. pit — in a race
  23. land — ground
  24. face — to point toward

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