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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. tear — from crying
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. vault — a safe
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bear — the animal
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. chest — a box
  16. rule — government
  17. tear — to rip
  18. rule — a law

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