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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: lean · rule · clip · vault · prune · perch · club · march

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. clip — a video
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. march — music
  5. rule — government
  6. lean — thin
  7. clip — to cut
  8. club — for golf
  9. rule — a law
  10. prune — to trim
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. perch — the fish
  13. march — the month
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. clip — for paper
  16. march — the month
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. club — a group
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. lean — to bend
  22. vault — a safe
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. club — for dancing

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