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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: squash · sharp · chest · bear · rash · vault · press · bark

  1. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. vault — a safe
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. press — a publisher
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. squash — the sport
  7. chest — of your body
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. chest — of your body
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bear — the animal
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. press — newspapers
  14. bear — the animal
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. chest — a box
  17. squash — to crush
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. bark — to shout
  20. rash — a series
  21. press — to push
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. bear — to put up with

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