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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 didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. board — a committee
  4. court — for sport
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. face — to confront
  10. cold — an illness
  11. court — of a king
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. bark — to shout
  14. board — to get on
  15. wake — a trail
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. vault — a safe
  18. cold — not warm
  19. face — part of the head
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. face — to point toward
  22. court — of law
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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