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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 tickets are free of ________________.
  2. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — a price
  2. vault — a safe
  3. club — for dancing
  4. clip — to cut
  5. charge — in control
  6. game — wild animals
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. clip — a video
  10. hand — in cards
  11. game — a match
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. charge — electricity
  14. club — for golf
  15. vault — an arched ceiling
  16. hand — help
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. club — a group
  19. suit — in cards
  20. suit — to fit
  21. suit — clothes
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. clip — for paper
  24. coach — a trainer

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