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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  6. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. season — in sport
  3. clip — to cut
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. stem — a stem cell
  6. vault — in gymnastics
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. clip — for paper
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. drill — a practice
  12. stem — to come from
  13. clip — a video
  14. roll — a cake
  15. roll — a list
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. vault — a safe
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. rock — a stone
  21. drill — the tool
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. rock — music
  24. drill — army training

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