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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: prune · clip · vault · leaves · lean · patient · wound · mate

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. wound — an injury
  3. clip — for paper
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wound — an injury
  6. patient — calm and waiting
  7. lean — to bend
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. vault — an arched ceiling
  11. prune — to trim
  12. mate — to breed
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. lean — thin
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. mate — a friend
  18. clip — to cut
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. mate — a partner
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. vault — a safe
  24. clip — a video

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