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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. We're on a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. scale — size or range
  3. vault — an arched ceiling
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. drill — a practice
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. kid — to tease
  11. drill — the tool
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. vault — a safe
  14. drill — army training
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. perch — the fish
  18. clip — to cut
  19. scale — in music
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. roll — a list
  23. kid — child
  24. roll — on a roll

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