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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: cold · bark · scale · chair · club · vault · wake · can

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. bark — a dog's sound
  3. club — for golf
  4. club — a group
  5. bark — to shout
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. vault — a safe
  9. scale — size or range
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. can — a tin
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — in gymnastics
  14. can — to be able to
  15. wake — a trail
  16. club — for dancing
  17. scale — in music
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. can — a tin
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. cold — not warm
  24. chair — to sit on

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