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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: deal · perch · vault · track · roll · chest · tear · season

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. We're on a ________________ here.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. chest — of your body
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. track — a path
  5. track — to keep track
  6. vault — a safe
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. tear — from crying
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. season — of the year
  11. roll — a cake
  12. roll — a list
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. tear — to rip
  15. chest — of your body
  16. perch — the fish
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. track — a song
  20. tear — from crying
  21. chest — a box
  22. roll — on a roll
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. deal — to handle

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