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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. last — finally
  3. clip — to cut
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. date — the fruit
  8. ball — a dance
  9. clip — a video
  10. ball — a great time
  11. vault — a safe
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. last — to go on
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. last — final
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. clip — for paper
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. bat — the animal

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