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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 116 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. pop — to visit
  3. kid — child
  4. vault — a safe
  5. clip — to cut
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. clip — for paper
  9. object — to protest
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. squash — to crush
  12. object — a thing
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. object — an aim
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. pop — music
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — to tease
  20. squash — the sport
  21. pop — soda
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. clip — a video
  24. dip — to sink

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