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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: key · deal · club · fall · snap · pound · tear · vault

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. tear — from crying
  3. club — for golf
  4. vault — a safe
  5. key — in music
  6. key — for a lock
  7. deal — to handle
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. tear — from crying
  10. fall — the season
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. fall — to drop
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. club — a group
  17. club — for dancing
  18. snap — to click
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. fall — to drop
  21. pound — a weight
  22. deal — a big deal
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. tear — to rip

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