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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: content · prune · chest · drill · clip · bowl · vault · current

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. drill — the tool
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — a practice
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. content — happy
  8. prune — to trim
  9. current — electric
  10. clip — to cut
  11. current — of water
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. chest — a box
  14. chest — of your body
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. current — happening now
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. vault — in gymnastics
  19. clip — for paper
  20. content — the amount
  21. prune — to trim
  22. clip — a video
  23. vault — a safe
  24. chest — of your body

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