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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. drill — the tool
  3. track — a song
  4. track — a path
  5. track — to keep track
  6. tear — from crying
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. ball — a dance
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. drill — army training
  12. tear — to rip
  13. branch — a division
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. fork — in a road
  20. drill — a practice
  21. vault — a safe
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. ball — a great time
  24. tear — from crying

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