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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: tear · coach · hide · snap · vault · bat

  1. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. vault — a safe
  6. snap — to click
  7. tear — from crying
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. tear — to rip
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. bat — the animal

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