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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. clip — for paper
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. drill — a practice
  5. capital — a city
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. bound — certain
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. staff — a stick
  10. mate — a partner
  11. vault — a safe
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. staff — employees
  14. staff — employees
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. mate — a friend
  17. drill — army training
  18. bound — obliged
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. mate — to breed
  21. bound — tied together
  22. clip — to cut
  23. capital — money
  24. drill — the tool

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