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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rock · vault · chest · shower · clip · date · ball · land

  1. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  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. shower — to wash
  2. rock — a stone
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. clip — to cut
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. shower — rain
  8. clip — a video
  9. chest — of your body
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. rock — music
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. ball — a dance
  14. vault — a safe
  15. land — a country
  16. ball — a great time
  17. land — ground
  18. chest — of your body
  19. date — the fruit
  20. land — to come down
  21. chest — a box
  22. clip — for paper
  23. rock — to move gently
  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