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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 116 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: band · mouse · scale · ball · swing · tear · vault · wind

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. band — a music group
  4. swing — to play on
  5. swing — in golf
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. mouse — for a computer
  8. tear — to rip
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. ball — a great time
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. band — a ring
  14. vault — a safe
  15. wind — moving air
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. scale — in music
  18. scale — size or range
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ball — a dance
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. wind — moving air

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