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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. False peace will not ________________.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. last — final
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. stem — to come from
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. clip — to cut
  8. vault — a safe
  9. clip — a video
  10. board — a committee
  11. board — to get on
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. track — a song
  15. clip — for paper
  16. last — to go on
  17. track — a path
  18. chip — to eat
  19. chip — for betting
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. track — to keep track

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