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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 116 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. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. When will it ________________ you to start?
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. suit — clothes
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. land — ground
  5. spell — letters
  6. pop — music
  7. land — a country
  8. pop — soda
  9. rest — what's left
  10. pop — to visit
  11. land — to come down
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. spell — magic
  14. pass — a permit
  15. rest — a break
  16. spell — a short time
  17. suit — to fit
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. suit — in cards
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. rest — what's left
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

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