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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  23. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. spell — a short time
  3. vault — a safe
  4. clip — to cut
  5. staff — employees
  6. clip — for paper
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. mate — to breed
  9. staff — employees
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. spell — letters
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. face — part of the head
  14. kid — to tease
  15. mate — a partner
  16. staff — a stick
  17. mate — a friend
  18. clip — a video
  19. face — to point toward
  20. face — to confront
  21. kid — child
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. mouse — for a computer

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