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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  20. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  21. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. object — to protest
  3. trunk — of a car
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. board — a committee
  6. cap — of ice
  7. object — an aim
  8. shower — rain
  9. shower — to wash
  10. stock — goods
  11. cap — a hat
  12. vault — a safe
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. clip — for paper
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. clip — a video
  18. stock — shares
  19. vault — in gymnastics
  20. trunk — of a tree
  21. object — a thing
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. cap — a lid
  24. board — to get on

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