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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. spring — a coil
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. bore — to tire
  5. pass — a permit
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. bark — to shout
  8. spring — of water
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. wake — a trail
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. deal — to handle
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. bore — to drill
  20. spring — the season
  21. vault — a safe
  22. chest — a box
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. chest — of your body

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