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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 120 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: mate · perch · fall · net · vault · wound · tear · charge

  1. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. vault — a safe
  3. charge — in control
  4. wound — an injury
  5. mate — a partner
  6. tear — from crying
  7. wound — an injury
  8. charge — a price
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. tear — from crying
  11. fall — the season
  12. net — for catching
  13. net — in sport
  14. charge — electricity
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. mate — to breed
  18. net — after costs
  19. fall — to drop
  20. mate — a friend
  21. fall — to drop
  22. perch — the fish
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. tear — to rip

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