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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  5. When will it ________________ you to start?
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — of water
  4. suit — in cards
  5. suit — to fit
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. club — for golf
  8. club — a group
  9. vault — a safe
  10. net — in sport
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. suit — clothes
  14. club — for dancing
  15. spring — the season
  16. clip — to cut
  17. net — after costs
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. sharp — clever
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ball — a dance

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