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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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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: net · dip · vault · fall · pop · tear · fork · game

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. fall — to drop
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. pop — to visit
  6. fall — to drop
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. fall — the season
  9. dip — to sink
  10. pop — music
  11. game — a match
  12. net — in sport
  13. dip — a sauce
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. game — wild animals
  16. net — for catching
  17. dip — to dunk
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. tear — to rip
  20. fork — in a road
  21. net — after costs
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. pop — soda

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