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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. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. vault — a safe
  3. clip — a video
  4. bass — the fish
  5. drill — the tool
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. clip — for paper
  8. drill — army training
  9. cold — not warm
  10. drill — a practice
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. clip — to cut
  13. perch — the fish
  14. cold — an illness
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — low music
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. vault — an arched ceiling
  24. racket — for tennis

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