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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: vault · chest · stand · bat · spell · safe · straw · tear

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. I can't ________________ this cold.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. chest — of your body
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. stand — to bear
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bat — the animal
  7. chest — of your body
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. vault — a safe
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. tear — from crying
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. spell — magic
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. spell — letters
  19. tear — from crying
  20. spell — a short time
  21. safe — out of danger
  22. tear — to rip
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. chest — a box

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