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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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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: snap · vault · patient · fall · cold · bark · prune · drill

  1. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — in gymnastics
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bark — to shout
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. cold — not warm
  6. prune — to trim
  7. drill — the tool
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. drill — a practice
  13. vault — a safe
  14. snap — to click
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. fall — to drop
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. fall — the season
  21. prune — to trim
  22. fall — to drop
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. drill — army training

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