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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.

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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: mark · kid · snap · vault · prune · nail · drill · cold

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. vault — a safe
  5. kid — to tease
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. kid — child
  8. mark — a trace
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. drill — army training
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. cold — not warm
  14. prune — to trim
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. drill — the tool
  18. snap — to click
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. mark — a grade
  21. prune — to trim
  22. drill — a practice
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. cold — an illness

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