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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: bay · safe · vault · date · ball · kid · tear · drill

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. kid — to tease
  3. safe — a strongbox
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. drill — army training
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. date — the fruit
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. tear — from crying
  13. kid — child
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. drill — the tool
  18. vault — a safe
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. tear — from crying
  21. ball — a dance
  22. drill — a practice
  23. tear — to rip
  24. ball — a great time

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