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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: saw · tear · vault · chair · fan · clip · bat · cue

  1. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  17. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. clip — a video
  3. saw — the tool
  4. tear — from crying
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. cue — a hint
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. cue — for pool
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. chair — a leader
  13. saw — the tool
  14. clip — for paper
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. vault — an arched ceiling
  17. vault — a safe
  18. bat — the animal
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. tear — to rip
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. tear — from crying
  24. cue — a signal

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