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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. clip — to cut
  4. vault — a safe
  5. net — after costs
  6. field — a subject
  7. fine — all right
  8. toast — a drink to someone
  9. bank — of a river
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. field — for sport
  12. clip — a video
  13. field — farmland
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. fine — high quality
  16. bank — for money
  17. band — a ring
  18. band — a music group
  19. net — for catching
  20. toast — bread
  21. clip — for paper
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. bank — for money
  24. net — in sport

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