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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: vault · toast · mine · lean · band · fan · tear · prune

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. toast — a drink to someone
  4. prune — to trim
  5. band — a music group
  6. tear — from crying
  7. prune — to trim
  8. tear — to rip
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. vault — a safe
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. lean — to bend
  17. band — a ring
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. mine — for digging
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. lean — thin
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. toast — bread

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