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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: bat · vault · tear · wake · squash · tube · bank · straw

  1. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. tube — in a tire
  5. tear — to rip
  6. bank — for money
  7. vault — a safe
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. tear — from crying
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. tube — the underground
  12. squash — to crush
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bank — for money
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. tear — from crying
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. squash — the sport
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. tube — a container
  24. bank — of a river

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