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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  12. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  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. track — a path
  2. net — after costs
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chest — of your body
  6. chest — of your body
  7. vault — a safe
  8. track — a song
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. chair — a professorship
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. net — in sport
  14. mate — to breed
  15. mate — a partner
  16. chest — a box
  17. mate — a friend
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. track — to keep track
  22. net — for catching
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  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