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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 116 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. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. current — happening now
  3. wind — moving air
  4. current — electric
  5. key — the most important part
  6. club — for dancing
  7. firm — a company
  8. clip — a video
  9. club — for golf
  10. firm — decided
  11. hand — in cards
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. clip — to cut
  14. hand — help
  15. firm — steady
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. clip — for paper
  19. key — for a lock
  20. club — a group
  21. wind — moving air
  22. current — of water
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. key — in music

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