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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 120 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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Word bank
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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: straw · rock · scale · vault · mine · prune · coach · tear

  1. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. scale — size or range
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. vault — a safe
  12. tear — from crying
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. rock — music
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mine — for digging
  18. tear — from crying
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. rock — a stone
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. scale — in music
  23. tear — to rip
  24. prune — to trim

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