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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. bark — to shout
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. file — a tool
  5. file — a document
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. scale — size or range
  9. file — a line of people
  10. cold — not warm
  11. season — in sport
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. cold — an illness
  17. scale — in music
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. squash — to crush
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. vault — a safe
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. scale — for weighing

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