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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. bass — low music
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. clip — to cut
  6. wound — an injury
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. branch — a division
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. clip — a video
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. mark — a grade
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. mark — a trace
  20. clip — for paper
  21. bass — the fish
  22. lean — to bend
  23. vault — a safe
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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