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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. clip — to cut
  3. march — the month
  4. mug — to rob
  5. mug — a cup
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. march — the month
  8. mug — a face
  9. court — of law
  10. clip — a video
  11. court — of a king
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. march — music
  14. pit — in a race
  15. clip — for paper
  16. court — for sport
  17. bass — low music
  18. pit — a hole

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