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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 120 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: bay · spell · game · vault · snap · bark · cell · wake

  1. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. How do you ________________ your surname?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. My mare is ________________ in color.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. game — wild animals
  3. game — a match
  4. vault — a safe
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. spell — a short time
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. snap — to click
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. cell — in biology
  12. wake — a trail
  13. spell — magic
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. cell — a phone
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. spell — letters
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bay — a horse colour
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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