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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. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. pop — to visit
  3. drill — the tool
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bark — to shout
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. mark — a trace
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. drill — a practice
  14. snap — to click
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. vault — a safe
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. drill — army training
  20. pop — music
  21. pop — soda
  22. mark — a grade
  23. branch — a division
  24. bowl — a football final

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