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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 120 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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. staff — employees
  3. fall — to drop
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. vault — a safe
  6. fall — to drop
  7. saw — the tool
  8. cap — a hat
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fall — the season
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. prune — to trim
  14. cap — of ice
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. clip — to cut
  18. cap — a lid
  19. staff — employees
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. clip — for paper
  22. dip — to sink
  23. staff — a stick
  24. clip — a video

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