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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 · vault · tube · bear · capital · file

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. tear — to rip
  3. bear — the animal
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bear — the animal
  7. file — a tool
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. tear — from crying
  10. capital — a city
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. capital — money
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. file — a document
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. tear — from crying
  17. vault — a safe
  18. tube — a container

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