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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. track — a song
  3. clip — a video
  4. drill — the tool
  5. drill — army training
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. tear — to rip
  8. vault — a safe
  9. saw — the tool
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. season — in sport
  13. track — to keep track
  14. saw — the tool
  15. tear — from crying
  16. track — a path
  17. stand — to bear
  18. season — of the year
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — to cut
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. tear — from crying
  24. drill — a practice

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