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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. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. date — the fruit
  3. fall — to drop
  4. press — newspapers
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — for paper
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. wax — for sculpting
  10. vault — a safe
  11. prune — to trim
  12. press — a publisher
  13. clip — to cut
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. wax — in the ear
  16. press — to push
  17. fall — to drop
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wax — to grow
  20. bark — to shout
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. fall — the season

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