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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — for light
  5. ball — a dance
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. clip — a video
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. date — the fruit
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. clip — for paper
  15. vault — a safe
  16. ball — a great time
  17. foot — a measure
  18. hand — help
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. hand — in cards
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. clip — to cut
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. present — the time now

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