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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: vault · coach · straw · race · bark · arm · mouse · spring

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. My father caught me by the ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. race — the arms race
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. mouse — for a computer
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. vault — a safe
  15. bark — to shout
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — a coil
  19. race — a contest
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. race — humankind
  22. spring — of water
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. mouse — the animal

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