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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. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a leader
  2. row — a line
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. season — in sport
  6. row — to paddle
  7. fine — high quality
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. vault — a safe
  12. clip — for paper
  13. key — in music
  14. key — the most important part
  15. band — a music group
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. clip — to cut
  18. band — a ring
  19. fine — all right
  20. key — for a lock
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. season — of the year
  23. clip — a video
  24. fine — a penalty

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