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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 girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. clip — to cut
  3. suit — in cards
  4. clip — a video
  5. staff — a stick
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. staff — employees
  8. net — for catching
  9. net — after costs
  10. march — the month
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. staff — employees
  14. vault — a safe
  15. chair — a leader
  16. march — music
  17. clip — for paper
  18. net — in sport
  19. suit — clothes
  20. march — the month
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. suit — to fit
  23. row — to paddle
  24. row — a quarrel

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