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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  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. spell — a short time
  2. staff — employees
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. content — happy
  5. content — the amount
  6. vault — a safe
  7. tear — from crying
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. spell — letters
  10. staff — employees
  11. track — to keep track
  12. track — a song
  13. track — a path
  14. shower — rain
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. tear — to rip
  17. shower — to wash
  18. staff — a stick
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. spell — magic
  21. tear — from crying
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  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