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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. rash — hasty
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. net — after costs
  6. foot — the bottom
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. vault — a safe
  10. bark — to shout
  11. lean — to bend
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. net — for catching
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. lean — to rest against
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. foot — a measure
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. rash — a series
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. net — in sport

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