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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: bore · branch · vault · perch · arm · game · cell · shower

  1. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to drill
  2. cell — in biology
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. perch — the fish
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. game — wild animals
  7. vault — a safe
  8. shower — to wash
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. shower — rain
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. bore — to tire
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — a division
  20. game — a match
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cell — a phone

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