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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: chair · net · perch · pass · face · vault · spring · tear

  1. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — to rip
  5. spring — the season
  6. net — in sport
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. face — part of the head
  9. net — after costs
  10. chair — a leader
  11. face — to confront
  12. spring — a coil
  13. face — to point toward
  14. spring — of water
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. pass — to spend time
  17. pass — a permit
  18. vault — a safe
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. net — for catching
  21. perch — the fish
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. perch — for a bird

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