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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. clip — to cut
  4. toast — bread
  5. tear — to rip
  6. pop — to visit
  7. pop — music
  8. current — happening now
  9. current — of water
  10. clip — a video
  11. ball — a great time
  12. current — electric
  13. board — a flat piece
  14. board — to get on
  15. cap — a hat
  16. board — a committee
  17. pop — soda
  18. cap — a lid
  19. tear — from crying
  20. tear — from crying
  21. cap — of ice
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. clip — for paper
  24. toast — the most admired

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