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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: cue · tear · band · vault · race · root

  1. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — to rip
  2. tear — from crying
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. root — of a plant
  5. cue — a signal
  6. vault — a safe
  7. root — of a word
  8. cue — for pool
  9. band — a ring
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. cue — a hint
  12. root — the cause
  13. race — a contest
  14. band — a music group
  15. race — humankind
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. tear — from crying
  18. race — the arms race

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