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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.

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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. band — a music group
  4. clip — a video
  5. staff — employees
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — for sport
  8. staff — employees
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. vault — a safe
  11. staff — a stick
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. clip — for paper
  15. band — a rubber band
  16. band — a ring
  17. field — farmland
  18. patient — a sick person

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