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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: vault · lean · row · tear · mine · wind

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. vault — an arched ceiling
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. row — to paddle
  5. wind — moving air
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. row — a line
  9. vault — a safe
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lean — to bend
  12. tear — to rip
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to rest against

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