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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 116 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. face — part of the head
  3. wound — an injury
  4. mug — to rob
  5. row — a quarrel
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. squash — to crush
  11. game — a match
  12. face — to point toward
  13. row — a line
  14. game — wild animals
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mug — a face
  17. row — to paddle
  18. mug — a cup
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. face — to confront
  22. squash — the sport
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. game — a kind of play

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