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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 · lash · toast · tear · vault · cold

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cold — not warm
  4. toast — bread
  5. tear — from crying
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. cold — an illness
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. cue — a hint
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. tear — to rip
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. cue — a signal
  18. cue — for pool

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