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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 120 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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. mug — a face
  3. rock — music
  4. squash — the sport
  5. track — a song
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. game — a match
  8. squash — to crush
  9. rush — hurry
  10. clip — for paper
  11. mug — a cup
  12. track — a path
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. mug — to rob
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. clip — a video
  20. rock — a stone
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. game — wild animals
  23. track — to keep track
  24. rush — to hurry

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