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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: firm · kid · chair · clip · straw · vault

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  13. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. clip — a video
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. firm — a company
  5. vault — an arched ceiling
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. kid — to tease
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. clip — for paper
  11. kid — child
  12. vault — in gymnastics
  13. firm — steady
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. chair — a leader
  17. clip — to cut
  18. firm — decided

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