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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: perch · vault · pop · file · hide · straw · track · tear

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. track — a song
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. track — a path
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. tear — to rip
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. pop — music
  13. pop — to visit
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. vault — a safe
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. file — a tool
  19. track — to keep track
  20. file — a line of people
  21. pop — soda
  22. file — a document
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — from crying

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