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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 was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. capital — money
  5. swing — music
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. board — a flat piece
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. vault — a safe
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. clip — to cut
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. clip — for paper
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. swing — to play on
  18. board — to get on
  19. capital — a city
  20. swing — in golf
  21. board — a committee
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. mine — for digging
  24. clip — a video

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