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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: clip · file · pit · calf · hand · pop · vault · pound

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. pit — in a race
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pit — a hole
  5. pop — music
  6. pop — soda
  7. hand — in cards
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. clip — to cut
  10. pound — to hit hard
  11. clip — for paper
  12. hand — help
  13. vault — an arched ceiling
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. clip — a video
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. pop — to visit
  19. pound — a weight
  20. file — a document
  21. vault — a safe
  22. file — a line of people
  23. vault — in gymnastics
  24. file — a tool

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