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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 ________________ went through the wall.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — for a hammer
  2. vault — a safe
  3. board — a committee
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. band — a music group
  7. prune — to trim
  8. capital — money
  9. prune — to trim
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. capital — a city
  12. clip — a video
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. clip — for paper
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. clip — to cut
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. pitch — completely
  20. band — a ring
  21. board — to get on
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. prune — the fruit

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