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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: bark · race · vault · stick · file · patient · face · kid

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. face — to confront
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. bark — to shout
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. race — humankind
  8. file — a line of people
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. vault — a safe
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. file — a document
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. file — a tool
  17. kid — to tease
  18. race — a contest
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. face — part of the head
  21. face — to point toward
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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