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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: tear · band · content · lash · march · net · arm · vault

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. tear — to rip
  3. net — after costs
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. net — for catching
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. vault — a safe
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — happy
  10. tear — from crying
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. band — a ring
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. march — the month
  17. content — the amount
  18. march — the month
  19. tear — from crying
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. net — in sport
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. march — music

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