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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. spell — magic
  5. snap — to click
  6. clip — for paper
  7. club — for golf
  8. snap — to speak sharply
  9. bound — certain
  10. spell — letters
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — tied together
  13. clip — to cut
  14. club — for dancing
  15. board — to get on
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — in football
  18. board — a committee
  19. club — a group
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. clip — a video
  23. board — a flat piece
  24. spell — a short time

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