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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — a break
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. vault — a safe
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rest — what's left
  12. wax — to grow
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. pop — soda
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bat — the animal
  23. wax — for sculpting
  24. pop — music

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