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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: drill · wind · snap · pop · club · vault

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. pop — music
  3. vault — a safe
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. snap — to click
  6. wind — moving air
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — a practice
  9. pop — soda
  10. club — a group
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. pop — to visit
  13. drill — the tool
  14. club — for dancing
  15. wind — moving air
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. vault — in gymnastics

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