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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pound — a weight
  5. bark — to shout
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. bank — for money
  9. track — a song
  10. bank — for money
  11. bank — of a river
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. vault — a safe
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. hand — in cards
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. vault — an arched ceiling
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. track — to keep track
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. hand — help
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. kick — in football

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