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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: key · temple · vault · shower · perch · fine · bat · ground

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. perch — the fish
  4. ground — a position
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. fine — high quality
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. fine — all right
  9. shower — rain
  10. bat — the animal
  11. vault — a safe
  12. shower — to wash
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. key — for a lock
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. key — the most important part
  22. key — in music
  23. ground — crushed
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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