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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. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. capital — a city
  3. tear — to rip
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — final
  7. tear — from crying
  8. bear — the animal
  9. capital — money
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. file — a tool
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. file — a document
  16. stem — to come from
  17. bear — the animal
  18. file — a line of people
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. last — finally
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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