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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: vault · scale · file · cap · mine · clip · toast · tube

  1. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. cap — a lid
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. vault — an arched ceiling
  5. toast — bread
  6. scale — in music
  7. file — a line of people
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cap — of ice
  10. tube — a container
  11. scale — size or range
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. cap — a hat
  14. clip — a video
  15. toast — the most admired
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. file — a document
  18. vault — a safe
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. clip — to cut
  22. file — a tool
  23. clip — for paper
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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