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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: stick · shower · firm · cell · chest · vault · band · bear

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. chest — of your body
  3. cell — a phone
  4. shower — to wash
  5. shower — a meteor shower
  6. vault — a safe
  7. shower — rain
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. firm — decided
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. band — a ring
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. chest — of your body
  17. bear — the animal
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. firm — steady
  20. chest — a box
  21. cell — in biology
  22. bear — the animal
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. firm — a company

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