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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: cell · craft · tear · lash · hand · present · wound · vault

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. tear — from crying
  3. hand — help
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. craft — a skill
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. cell — in biology
  10. tear — from crying
  11. present — there
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cell — a phone
  15. vault — a safe
  16. wound — an injury
  17. present — a gift
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. tear — to rip
  20. craft — boats
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. wound — an injury
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. hand — in cards

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