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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. tear — from crying
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. shower — rain
  7. vault — a safe
  8. band — a ring
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bank — for money
  11. roll — a cake
  12. bank — for money
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. band — a music group
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. shower — to wash
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. kick — in football
  20. roll — a list
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. rush — hurry
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. bank — of a river

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