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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. drill — army training
  3. tube — a container
  4. clip — to cut
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — a video
  9. key — the most important part
  10. key — for a lock
  11. track — to keep track
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. rash — hasty
  15. vault — a safe
  16. staff — a stick
  17. key — in music
  18. rash — a series
  19. staff — employees
  20. drill — the tool
  21. tube — the underground
  22. track — a path
  23. drill — a practice
  24. track — a song

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