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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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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: shower · bass · board · pit · cold · fan · present · vault

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. board — to get on
  4. shower — to wash
  5. pit — a hole
  6. present — the time now
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. pit — in a race
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. shower — rain
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bass — low music
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. present — there
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. present — a gift
  22. vault — a safe
  23. cold — an illness
  24. board — a committee

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