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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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468
Word bank
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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 ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. drill — a practice
  3. clip — a video
  4. drill — the tool
  5. vault — a safe
  6. tear — from crying
  7. drill — army training
  8. season — of the year
  9. clip — to cut
  10. season — in sport
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. kick — in football
  13. kid — child
  14. kid — to tease
  15. ground — the earth
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. ground — crushed
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. tear — to rip
  20. ground — a position
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. clip — for paper
  24. tear — from crying

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