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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: ball · present · ground · vault · net · shower · stand · cell

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. stand — to bear
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. vault — a safe
  5. net — in sport
  6. ball — a great time
  7. net — after costs
  8. shower — rain
  9. ground — crushed
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. shower — to wash
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. cell — in biology
  14. present — the time now
  15. present — there
  16. cell — a phone
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. ground — the earth
  20. net — for catching
  21. present — a gift
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. ground — a position

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