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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: vault · bark · wound · march · calf · tear · last · shower

  1. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. calf — of the leg
  2. wound — an injury
  3. tear — to rip
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. tear — from crying
  6. march — music
  7. vault — a safe
  8. march — the month
  9. shower — rain
  10. bark — to shout
  11. last — finally
  12. tear — from crying
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. last — to go on
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. march — the month
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. wound — an injury
  22. last — final
  23. shower — to wash
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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