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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. land — ground
  3. club — for dancing
  4. pitch — a sports field
  5. land — to come down
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — a gift
  8. rash — a series
  9. club — for golf
  10. rash — hasty
  11. vault — a safe
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. pitch — completely
  14. present — there
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. clip — for paper
  17. perch — the fish
  18. clip — to cut
  19. land — a country
  20. club — a group
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. clip — a video
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rash — on the skin

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