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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. vault — a safe
  3. bat — the animal
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. clip — to cut
  11. rush — hurry
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. clip — for paper
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. fork — in a road
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. clip — a video

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