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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. vault — a safe
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. clip — a video
  7. roll — a cake
  8. clip — for paper
  9. scale — in music
  10. clip — to cut
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. roll — a list
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. kid — child
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. scale — size or range
  20. wave — with your hand
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. kick — in football
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. trunk — of a car

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