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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. mug — a cup
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. shower — rain
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. mug — a face
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. mug — to rob
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. clip — for paper
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — to cut
  13. vault — a safe
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. shower — to wash
  18. shower — a meteor shower

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