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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: wind · vault · march · race · bat · suit · tear · scale

  1. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — in cards
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. scale — size or range
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. wind — moving air
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. tear — from crying
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. wind — moving air
  12. vault — a safe
  13. march — the month
  14. scale — in music
  15. tear — to rip
  16. tear — from crying
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. suit — to fit
  20. race — a contest
  21. suit — clothes
  22. march — music
  23. march — the month
  24. bat — the animal

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