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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: saw · stand · vault · kick · tear · mouse · wound · land

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. wound — an injury
  5. tear — from crying
  6. saw — the tool
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. mouse — for a computer
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. land — to come down
  11. land — a country
  12. vault — a safe
  13. land — ground
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. kick — in football
  16. stand — to bear
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. saw — the tool
  19. tear — to rip
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. mouse — the animal

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