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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: wound · bark · object · vault · kid · pitcher · bowl · bass

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. object — to protest
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. wound — an injury
  15. object — a thing
  16. object — an aim
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. wound — an injury
  19. kid — child
  20. bass — the fish
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bass — low music

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