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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: nail · vault · pit · field · clip · rule

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. field — for sport
  7. vault — an arched ceiling
  8. rule — government
  9. vault — a safe
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. field — a subject
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. pit — in a race
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. clip — for paper
  16. rule — a law
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. pit — a hole

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