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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. Have you found your soul ________________?
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. swing — to play on
  3. clip — a video
  4. drill — army training
  5. clip — to cut
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. swing — in golf
  8. rush — hurry
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. drill — the tool
  12. pitch — completely
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. clip — for paper
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. spell — a short time
  17. drill — a practice
  18. fork — in a road
  19. mate — a friend
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. mate — a partner
  22. swing — music
  23. spell — letters
  24. mate — to breed

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