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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. key — for a lock
  3. cap — a hat
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. vault — a safe
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. bark — to shout
  8. rock — a stone
  9. foot — a measure
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. kid — child
  12. rock — music
  13. cap — a lid
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. cap — of ice
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. sharp — clever
  20. key — the most important part
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. key — in music
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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