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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: game · prune · ground · bark · vault · wax · bay · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. prune — to trim
  9. ground — the earth
  10. wax — in the ear
  11. vault — a safe
  12. ground — crushed
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bay — to keep at bay
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. wax — to grow
  17. prune — to trim
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. ground — a position
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. game — a match

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