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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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Word bank
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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 · lean · game · perch · shower · pop · content · vault

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. lean — to bend
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. vault — a safe
  5. shower — to wash
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. tear — to rip
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. pop — music
  10. content — happy
  11. game — a match
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. shower — rain
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pop — soda
  17. tear — from crying
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. perch — the fish
  21. content — the amount
  22. game — wild animals
  23. lean — thin
  24. tear — from crying

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