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

Word bank: drill · tear · shower · vault · racket · stem

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. vault — a safe
  3. shower — rain
  4. stem — to come from
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. drill — army training
  7. drill — a practice
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. tear — from crying
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. drill — the tool
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — to wash
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. tear — from crying

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