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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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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: season · cap · coach · bark · kick · fine · vault · cold

  1. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  16. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. cap — of ice
  3. fine — all right
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. cold — not warm
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. season — of the year
  8. bark — to shout
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. fine — high quality
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. cold — an illness
  15. bark — a dog's sound
  16. coach — pulled by horses
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. cap — a lid
  22. season — in sport
  23. kick — in football
  24. vault — a safe

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