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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: calf · bat · last · swing · vault · tear

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. bat — the animal
  3. last — to go on
  4. tear — from crying
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bat — in an idiom
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. last — final
  9. tear — from crying
  10. last — finally
  11. swing — in golf
  12. swing — music
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. swing — to play on
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. tear — to rip
  18. calf — a young animal

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