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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. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. clip — a video
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. rash — hasty
  5. spring — a coil
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. foot — a measure
  8. clip — for paper
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. present — there
  11. scale — in music
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. vault — a safe
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. rash — a series
  16. foot — the bottom
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. clip — to cut
  19. spring — the season
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. present — the time now
  22. scale — size or range
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. present — a gift

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