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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: roll · deal · season · wound · vault · shower · leaves · trunk

  1. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. wound — an injury
  4. roll — a cake
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. deal — to handle
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. vault — a safe
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. wound — an injury
  15. shower — rain
  16. season — in sport
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. shower — to wash
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. season — of the year
  22. roll — a list
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. roll — on a roll

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