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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. court — of a king
  3. bear — the animal
  4. clip — a video
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. staff — a stick
  7. court — for sport
  8. bear — the animal
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — for paper
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. court — of law
  13. present — the time now
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. present — a gift
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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