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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: bulb · vault · cold · current · kid · chest · bark · cap

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. chest — a box
  3. vault — a safe
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. kid — to tease
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. bark — to shout
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. kid — child
  11. current — of water
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. bulb — for light
  18. current — electric
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bulb — for light
  21. cap — of ice
  22. current — happening now
  23. cap — a hat
  24. cold — the Cold War

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