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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. season — of the year
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. pound — to hit hard
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. clip — for paper
  8. wake — a trail
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. season — in sport
  11. spell — letters
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. spell — magic
  14. spell — a short time
  15. clip — a video
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. pound — a weight

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