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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. drill — army training
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. spell — a short time
  9. drill — the tool
  10. mark — a grade
  11. mark — a trace
  12. pass — a permit
  13. clip — for paper
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. spell — letters
  16. clip — a video
  17. spell — magic
  18. vault — a safe
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. clip — to cut
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. drill — a practice

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