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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 116 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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Have you found your soul ________________?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. land — to come down
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. bank — for money
  5. bass — the instrument
  6. clip — to cut
  7. field — farmland
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. clip — for paper
  10. ball — a dance
  11. mate — to breed
  12. clip — a video
  13. bass — low music
  14. mate — a friend
  15. land — a country
  16. bass — the fish
  17. bank — of a river
  18. land — ground
  19. vault — a safe
  20. bank — for money
  21. field — for sport
  22. field — a subject
  23. mate — a partner
  24. ball — a great time

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