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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 sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. sharp — clever
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. squash — to crush
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. clip — to cut
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. vault — a safe
  10. season — of the year
  11. spring — the season
  12. spring — of water
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. spring — a coil
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. season — in sport
  17. clip — a video
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. squash — the sport
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. squash — the vegetable

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