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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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Word bank
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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 · plane · land · degree · coach · bark · perch · kick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. bark — to shout
  4. land — a country
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. plane — a tool
  10. degree — temperature
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — ground
  13. vault — a safe
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. kick — in football
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. degree — from a university
  22. degree — an amount
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. perch — the fish

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