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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  10. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. craft — a skill
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. craft — boats
  6. spring — the season
  7. clip — a video
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. vault — in gymnastics
  10. craft — a handicraft
  11. spring — of water
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. mine — for digging
  14. scale — in music
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. spring — a coil
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. clip — for paper
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. scale — size or range
  23. vault — a safe
  24. mine — belonging to me

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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