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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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Word bank
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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: bowl · mine · spring · can · snap · chest · bark · vault

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. can — a tin
  4. can — a tin
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. spring — of water
  7. mine — for digging
  8. chest — of your body
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. vault — a safe
  12. chest — a box
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. bark — to shout
  19. can — to be able to
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. spring — a coil
  22. snap — to click
  23. spring — the season
  24. bowl — to roll

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