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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. vault — a safe
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. current — happening now
  5. current — electric
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. last — to go on
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. land — to come down
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. last — finally
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. file — a document
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. bark — to shout
  16. land — a country
  17. current — of water
  18. stock — goods
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. last — final
  21. file — a tool
  22. land — ground
  23. stock — shares
  24. file — a line of people

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