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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. season — of the year
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. clip — for paper
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. season — in sport
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pitch — completely
  13. vault — a safe
  14. clip — a video
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. charge — a price
  21. last — final
  22. charge — in control
  23. clip — to cut
  24. charge — electricity

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