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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: spell · race · face · cap · tear · vault

  1. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. cap — of ice
  3. face — to point toward
  4. vault — a safe
  5. cap — a lid
  6. race — a contest
  7. face — part of the head
  8. face — to confront
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. race — the arms race
  11. spell — letters
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. tear — from crying
  14. cap — a hat
  15. spell — magic
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. race — humankind

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