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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: tear · vault · hide · band · kid · ball

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. tear — from crying
  3. band — a music group
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. ball — a dance
  6. band — a ring
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. kid — to tease
  9. tear — to rip
  10. vault — a safe
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. kid — child
  14. ball — a great time
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. tear — from crying
  18. ball — a round shape

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