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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 116 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. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. tear — to rip
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. shower — to wash
  6. branch — a division
  7. shower — rain
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. tear — from crying
  10. ground — the earth
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. vault — a safe
  14. firm — a company
  15. ground — a position
  16. firm — decided
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. capital — money
  19. capital — a city
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. firm — steady
  22. ground — crushed
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. capital — a big letter

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