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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: bowl · vault · dip · snap · chest · racket · bear · file

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. file — a tool
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. file — a document
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. vault — a safe
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — a box
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. file — a line of people
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. dip — to sink
  24. bear — 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