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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: race · march · chair · tear · cap · craft · vault · ruler

  1. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. march — music
  2. tear — to rip
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. cap — a lid
  5. chair — a leader
  6. march — the month
  7. craft — a handicraft
  8. cap — a hat
  9. tear — from crying
  10. tear — from crying
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. race — the arms race
  13. race — humankind
  14. cap — of ice
  15. march — the month
  16. craft — boats
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. race — a contest
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. craft — a skill
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — a safe
  24. ruler — for measuring

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