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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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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: spell · key · pound · vault · shower · clip · dip · track

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. key — in music
  3. spell — magic
  4. shower — rain
  5. pound — a weight
  6. clip — to cut
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. dip — to sink
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. spell — letters
  11. key — for a lock
  12. key — the most important part
  13. vault — a safe
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. clip — for paper
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. shower — to wash
  18. clip — a video
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. track — to keep track
  21. spell — a short time
  22. track — a path
  23. track — a song
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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