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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. face — to confront
  3. ball — a great time
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — for paper
  7. vault — a safe
  8. wound — an injury
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. face — part of the head
  11. clip — to cut
  12. fork — in a road
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. wound — an injury
  15. perch — the fish
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. ball — a dance
  20. rock — music
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. rock — a stone
  24. face — to point toward

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