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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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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: mate · jam · mouse · club · trunk · staff · vault · clip

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  22. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. Have you found your soul ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. clip — to cut
  6. staff — employees
  7. club — for golf
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. jam — in traffic
  11. club — a group
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. clip — a video
  14. clip — for paper
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mate — to breed
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. vault — a safe
  19. staff — employees
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. vault — in gymnastics
  22. trunk — of an elephant
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mate — a partner

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