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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 information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  14. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a document
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. net — for catching
  4. file — a tool
  5. rash — hasty
  6. vault — a safe
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. net — in sport
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. deal — to handle
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. bound — tied together
  13. rash — a series
  14. bark — to shout
  15. bound — certain
  16. rush — hurry
  17. bound — obliged
  18. file — a line of people
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. net — after costs
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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