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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. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — an arched ceiling
  2. vault — a safe
  3. march — the month
  4. last — to go on
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. pop — soda
  7. last — finally
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. bore — to drill
  10. pop — to visit
  11. march — music
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. last — final
  14. pop — music
  15. bore — to tire
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. tube — a container
  18. tube — the underground
  19. clip — to cut
  20. march — the month
  21. bark — to shout
  22. clip — for paper
  23. clip — a video
  24. bark — of a tree

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