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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. branch — a division
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bear — the animal
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. tear — from crying
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. bat — in an idiom
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. degree — an amount
  12. bat — the animal
  13. tear — to rip
  14. fine — all right
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. fine — high quality
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. bear — the animal
  20. degree — from a university
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. degree — temperature

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