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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 116 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: scale · wave · board · vault · rock · tear · straw · cold

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. tear — to rip
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. cold — an illness
  7. scale — in music
  8. scale — size or range
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. tear — from crying
  11. board — to get on
  12. rock — music
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. cold — not warm
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. board — a flat piece
  18. vault — a safe
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. tear — from crying
  22. rock — a stone
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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