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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 116 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: fall · stand · shower · bowl · saw · snap · vault · cell

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. saw — the tool
  3. fall — the season
  4. cell — in biology
  5. vault — a safe
  6. shower — to wash
  7. stand — on your feet
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. cell — a phone
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. fall — to drop
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — rain
  21. stand — to bear
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. fall — to drop
  24. snap — to click

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