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

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. clip — to cut
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. object — an aim
  9. object — to protest
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. stem — to come from
  12. degree — an amount
  13. clip — a video
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. degree — from a university
  16. object — a thing
  17. vault — a safe
  18. clip — for paper

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