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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 116 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: vault · cap · bark · snap · branch · swing · row · season

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. swing — music
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. vault — a safe
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. snap — to click
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. row — a line
  9. cap — a hat
  10. cap — a lid
  11. branch — a division
  12. row — to paddle
  13. season — of the year
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. bark — to shout
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. swing — in golf
  20. cap — of ice
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. swing — to play 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