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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 don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. tear — from crying
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. vault — a safe
  10. tear — from crying
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. track — to keep track
  13. pitch — completely
  14. track — a path
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. track — a song
  18. rock — music
  19. row — a line
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. row — to paddle
  23. rock — a stone
  24. tear — to rip

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