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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. file — a document
  8. saw — the tool
  9. file — a line of people
  10. clip — a video
  11. pop — soda
  12. vault — a safe
  13. kid — child
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. saw — the tool
  18. file — a tool
  19. pop — music
  20. pop — to visit
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. clip — to cut
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. kid — to tease

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