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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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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 · fork · stick · clip · foot · band · straw · cue

  1. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — a video
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. cue — a signal
  4. band — a music group
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. cue — a hint
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. foot — a measure
  10. band — a ring
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. vault — a safe
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. clip — for paper
  19. vault — an arched ceiling
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. fork — in a road
  22. clip — to cut
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cue — for pool

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