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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. When was this ________________ built?
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. temple — a place of worship
  3. clip — a video
  4. track — to keep track
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pound — a weight
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. bat — the animal
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. clip — to cut
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. track — a song
  22. track — a path
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. pitch — completely

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