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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 120 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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. press — a publisher
  3. staff — a stick
  4. tear — from crying
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. object — a thing
  7. track — a song
  8. track — to keep track
  9. staff — employees
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. press — to push
  12. tear — to rip
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. object — to protest
  16. staff — employees
  17. vault — a safe
  18. tear — from crying
  19. object — an aim
  20. press — newspapers
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. bark — to shout
  24. calf — a young animal

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