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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. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. We're on a ________________ here.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. lean — thin
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. can — a tin
  6. pop — to visit
  7. roll — a list
  8. can — a tin
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. pop — soda
  11. can — to be able to
  12. clip — to cut
  13. roll — on a roll
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. vault — a safe
  16. wound — an injury
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. clip — for paper
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. clip — a video
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. pop — music
  23. lean — to bend
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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