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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 120 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: vault · track · ball · scale · fan · march · clip · patient

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. ball — a dance
  4. scale — size or range
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. clip — to cut
  9. scale — in music
  10. track — a path
  11. track — to keep track
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. clip — for paper
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. track — a song
  18. clip — a video
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. march — the month
  22. vault — a safe
  23. march — music
  24. ball — a great time

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