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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. spring — a coil
  3. charge — electricity
  4. chest — of your body
  5. spring — of water
  6. mark — a trace
  7. clip — to cut
  8. spring — the season
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. charge — in control
  12. mark — a grade
  13. charge — a price
  14. chest — a box
  15. pitch — completely
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. chest — of your body
  18. vault — a safe
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. clip — a video
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. dip — to sink

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