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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. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — for a computer
  2. clip — to cut
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. ground — a position
  6. bank — for money
  7. ground — crushed
  8. deal — to handle
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — of a river
  11. nail — on a finger
  12. vault — a safe
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. cold — an illness
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. clip — a video
  18. ground — the earth
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. cold — not warm
  22. vault — in gymnastics
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. clip — for paper

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