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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 116 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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. clip — for paper
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. clip — a video
  5. staff — a stick
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. staff — employees
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. mate — a friend
  10. mate — a partner
  11. mate — to breed
  12. tear — to rip
  13. tear — from crying
  14. file — a document
  15. vault — in gymnastics
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. file — a line of people
  19. vault — a safe
  20. tear — from crying
  21. clip — to cut
  22. file — a tool
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. staff — employees

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