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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. bank — of a river
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. vault — a safe
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — an injury
  8. row — to paddle
  9. bank — for money
  10. bark — to shout
  11. clip — a video
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. clip — to cut
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. bank — for money
  18. dip — to sink
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. row — a line
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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