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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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Word bank
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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: kid · clip · vault · hide · cold · deal

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. clip — for paper
  4. deal — a big deal
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. vault — a safe
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. deal — to handle
  9. clip — to cut
  10. kid — child
  11. clip — a video
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. vault — an arched ceiling
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. cold — an illness
  18. cold — not warm

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