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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: ground · object · patient · fall · tear · vault

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. fall — to drop
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. tear — to rip
  5. object — to protest
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. vault — a safe
  8. object — an aim
  9. tear — from crying
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. fall — to drop
  12. fall — the season
  13. object — a thing
  14. ground — a position
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. ground — crushed
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. ground — the earth

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