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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 116 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: squash · vault · wind · file · cap · bark · saw · band

  1. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a lid
  2. saw — the tool
  3. cap — a hat
  4. wind — moving air
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — the sport
  8. band — a ring
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. file — a tool
  11. band — a music group
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. vault — a safe
  14. file — a document
  15. squash — to crush
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. bark — of a tree
  18. cap — of ice
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. file — a line of people
  22. wind — moving air
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bark — to shout

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