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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. When was this ________________ built?
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. bound — tied together
  4. tear — to rip
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. tear — from crying
  8. vault — a safe
  9. shower — to wash
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. hand — in cards
  12. kid — to tease
  13. shower — rain
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bound — obliged
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. hand — help
  18. bound — certain
  19. kid — child
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. tear — from crying
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. plane — a tool
  24. temple — side of the head

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