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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: fine · kid · band · vault · season · clip · swing · root

  1. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. swing — to play on
  3. vault — in gymnastics
  4. clip — to cut
  5. band — a music group
  6. vault — a safe
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. clip — a video
  9. season — in sport
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. root — of a word
  12. band — a ring
  13. kid — child
  14. root — the cause
  15. root — of a plant
  16. swing — music
  17. vault — an arched ceiling
  18. clip — for paper
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. swing — in golf
  21. season — of the year
  22. fine — high quality
  23. kid — to tease
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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