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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. clip — a video
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. cap — of ice
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. clip — for paper
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. court — for sport
  10. mine — for digging
  11. rock — a stone
  12. cap — a hat
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. cap — a lid
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. court — of law
  17. board — a committee
  18. court — of a king
  19. vault — a safe
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. clip — to cut
  23. board — to get on
  24. mine — belonging to me

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