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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. fine — all right
  3. mark — a trace
  4. mug — a face
  5. bound — tied together
  6. pitch — completely
  7. prune — to trim
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. mate — a friend
  10. clip — for paper
  11. fine — high quality
  12. mark — a grade
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. prune — to trim
  15. clip — a video
  16. mug — to rob
  17. bound — obliged
  18. bound — certain
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. mate — a partner
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. mate — to breed
  24. mug — a cup

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