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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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. clip — a video
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. pop — to visit
  6. pop — music
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. spell — a short time
  10. clip — for paper
  11. spell — letters
  12. cold — not warm
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. cold — an illness
  15. season — of the year
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. spell — magic
  20. clip — to cut
  21. season — in sport
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. pop — soda

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