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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. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. clip — for paper
  3. fine — all right
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. fine — high quality
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. rush — hurry
  8. drill — army training
  9. court — of a king
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. clip — a video
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. present — a gift
  14. vault — a safe
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. present — there
  17. drill — a practice
  18. court — of law
  19. court — for sport
  20. present — the time now
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. clip — to cut
  24. rush — a thrill

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