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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. content — the amount
  3. vault — a safe
  4. rock — a stone
  5. court — of a king
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. court — for sport
  11. court — of law
  12. kid — child
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. rock — music
  15. net — for catching
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. net — in sport
  18. content — happy
  19. kid — to tease
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. net — after costs

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