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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. mine — for digging
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. vault — a safe
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. band — a music group
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — the tool
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. drill — a practice
  18. clip — to cut
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. branch — a division
  21. clip — a video
  22. clip — for paper
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a ring

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