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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: foot · ball · file · vault · shower · race · land · fork

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. fork — in a road
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. shower — to wash
  5. race — humankind
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. race — the arms race
  10. ball — a great time
  11. file — a document
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. land — ground
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. shower — rain
  16. foot — a measure
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. ball — a dance
  19. land — to come down
  20. file — a line of people
  21. land — a country
  22. file — a tool
  23. race — a contest
  24. vault — a safe

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