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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 goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. I can't ________________ this cold.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  21. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. ground — a position
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. current — happening now
  6. vault — a safe
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stand — to bear
  11. clip — for paper
  12. current — of water
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. clip — a video
  19. perch — the fish
  20. stand — on your feet
  21. current — electric
  22. ground — crushed
  23. clip — to cut
  24. ground — the earth

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