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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: vault · press · march · stick · snap · kick · shower · plane

  1. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  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. march — the month
  2. vault — a safe
  3. shower — rain
  4. snap — to click
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. press — newspapers
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. plane — a tool
  10. press — a publisher
  11. kick — in football
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. march — the month
  17. press — to push
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. stick — to attach or keep to
  20. shower — to wash
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. march — music
  23. plane — in geometry
  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