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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 120 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 felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. key — in music
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bark — a dog's sound
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. key — for a lock
  8. mark — a grade
  9. mark — to pay attention
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. pound — a weight
  14. mark — a trace
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — a safe
  17. key — the most important part
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. chest — a box
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bark — to shout
  23. pound — for dogs
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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