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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: tear · fall · rock · can · vault · bulb · degree · straw

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  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. tear — from crying
  2. rock — music
  3. can — a tin
  4. fall — to drop
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bulb — for light
  7. fall — the season
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. can — to be able to
  11. tear — from crying
  12. degree — temperature
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. degree — from a university
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. fall — to drop
  17. degree — an amount
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. rock — a stone
  20. can — a tin
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. bulb — for light
  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