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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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Word bank
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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: bark · vault · cell · tear · court · rush

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. cell — a phone
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. court — for sport
  9. rush — hurry
  10. court — of a king
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. vault — a safe
  13. tear — to rip
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. cell — in biology
  17. tear — from crying
  18. bark — to shout

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