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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  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. squash — to crush
  2. tear — to rip
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. kick — in football
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. mine — for digging
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. plane — a tool
  9. capital — a city
  10. vault — a safe
  11. club — for golf
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. club — a group
  14. squash — the sport
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. capital — money
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. tear — from crying
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. club — for dancing
  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