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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: bear · stand · tear · vault · straw · kick

  1. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. kick — in football
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. tear — to rip
  10. vault — a safe
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. bear — the animal
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. bear — the animal
  18. vault — in gymnastics

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