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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 120 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  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. bark — to shout
  2. vault — a safe
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. degree — from a university
  8. row — a line
  9. bear — the animal
  10. rash — a series
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. degree — an amount
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. bore — to drill
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. row — to paddle
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. bear — the animal
  20. bore — to tire
  21. degree — temperature
  22. wind — moving air
  23. row — a quarrel
  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