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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. vault — a safe
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. clip — for paper
  10. craft — a skill
  11. clip — to cut
  12. court — for sport
  13. court — of a king
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. court — of law
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. craft — boats
  20. band — a ring
  21. clip — a video
  22. stem — to come from
  23. band — a music group
  24. craft — a handicraft

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