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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: hide · vault · clip · stock · foot · lean · mine · content

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. content — the amount
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. clip — to cut
  7. vault — in gymnastics
  8. stock — shares
  9. stock — goods
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. content — happy
  13. mine — for digging
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. vault — a safe
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. lean — thin
  23. foot — a measure
  24. clip — for paper

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