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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: bark · fall · kid · bear · saw · calf · court · vault

  1. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. bear — the animal
  3. saw — the tool
  4. vault — a safe
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. fall — to drop
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. fall — to drop
  10. bark — to shout
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. kid — child
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. calf — of the leg
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. fall — the season
  21. bear — the animal
  22. kid — to tease
  23. saw — the tool
  24. court — of law

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