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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: roll · band · snap · bark · bear · drill · ground · vault

  1. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a music group
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. vault — a safe
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. drill — the tool
  7. ground — crushed
  8. ground — a position
  9. drill — army training
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. roll — a list
  13. roll — a cake
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. band — a ring
  17. snap — to click
  18. bear — the animal
  19. bear — the animal
  20. ground — the earth
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. bark — to shout
  23. drill — a practice
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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