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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 124 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. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. ball — a dance
  4. object — a thing
  5. mate — a partner
  6. ball — a great time
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mate — to breed
  9. object — to protest
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. clip — to cut
  12. swing — in golf
  13. clip — a video
  14. swing — to play on
  15. clip — for paper
  16. swing — music
  17. mate — a friend
  18. ball — a round shape

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