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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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Word bank
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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: straw · rule · tear · hide · vault · court

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. court — of a king
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. court — of law
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. tear — from crying
  8. tear — from crying
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. rule — a law
  11. vault — a safe
  12. court — for sport
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. rule — government
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. tear — to rip
  18. hide — to keep secret

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