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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: temple · tear · cap · tube · key · hand · vault · cell

  1. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  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 — in music
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. key — the most important part
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. cell — a phone
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. cap — of ice
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — from crying
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. cell — in biology
  15. key — for a lock
  16. hand — in cards
  17. cap — a lid
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. tube — a container
  20. tube — the underground
  21. hand — help
  22. cap — a hat
  23. vault — a safe
  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