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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. 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. pitcher — in baseball
  2. spell — letters
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. spell — a short time
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. spell — magic
  11. clip — to cut
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. clip — for paper
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. 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