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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: perch · staff · clip · drill · racket · kid · vault · pitcher

  1. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — the tool
  2. clip — a video
  3. clip — to cut
  4. perch — the fish
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. vault — a safe
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. staff — employees
  9. staff — a stick
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. drill — army training
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. kid — to tease
  14. vault — in gymnastics
  15. staff — employees
  16. kid — child
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. drill — a practice
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. clip — for paper
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. vault — an arched ceiling

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