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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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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: fan · sharp · mark · vault · wind · tear · kid · perch

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. tear — to rip
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. kid — child
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. mark — a trace
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. perch — the fish
  12. wind — moving air
  13. fan — to cool the air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. tear — from crying
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. sharp — clever
  19. kid — to tease
  20. tear — from crying
  21. vault — a safe
  22. mark — a grade
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. sharp — exactly

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