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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: land · pit · calf · chair · vault · mine · tear · ball

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. tear — from crying
  3. ball — a dance
  4. chair — a leader
  5. vault — a safe
  6. ball — a great time
  7. pit — in a race
  8. land — a country
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. tear — to rip
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. pit — a fruit stone
  16. pit — a hole
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — ground
  21. tear — from crying
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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