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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. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. vault — a safe
  3. sharp — clever
  4. tube — the underground
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. bound — certain
  9. tube — a container
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — in music
  12. deal — to handle
  13. bound — tied together
  14. scale — size or range
  15. clip — a video
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. clip — for paper
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bound — obliged
  24. deal — an agreement

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