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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: cabinet · safe · swing · bark · cold · mine · vault · wind

  1. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. vault — a safe
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. swing — music
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. cold — an illness
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. bark — to shout
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. swing — to play on
  21. swing — in golf
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. mine — for digging
  24. cold — not warm

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