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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: clip · vault · drill · game · leaves · club · track · sharp

  1. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — of a tree
  2. drill — the tool
  3. track — a path
  4. track — a song
  5. clip — a video
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. club — for golf
  8. clip — to cut
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. game — a match
  11. game — wild animals
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. club — for dancing
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. drill — a practice
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. clip — for paper
  18. drill — army training
  19. club — a group
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. track — to keep track
  22. sharp — clever
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. vault — a safe

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