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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 120 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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. mine — for digging
  4. tear — from crying
  5. cell — in biology
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. cell — a phone
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. dip — to sink
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. saw — the tool
  14. vault — a safe
  15. saw — the tool
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. tear — to rip

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