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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. chair — a leader
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. current — happening now
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. clip — a video
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. bass — low music
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. current — of water
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. date — the fruit
  18. bass — the fish
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. race — a contest
  21. clip — for paper
  22. clip — to cut
  23. current — electric
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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