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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. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. club — for golf
  3. degree — from a university
  4. club — for dancing
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. kid — to tease
  7. tear — from crying
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. board — a committee
  10. degree — an amount
  11. tear — to rip
  12. object — to protest
  13. vault — a safe
  14. scale — size or range
  15. kid — child
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. club — a group
  18. degree — temperature
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. object — an aim
  21. board — to get on
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. object — a thing
  24. scale — in music

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