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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. drill — a practice
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. perch — the fish
  5. drill — army training
  6. prune — to trim
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bound — certain
  9. clip — for paper
  10. track — to keep track
  11. bound — tied together
  12. bound — obliged
  13. clip — a video
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. mark — a grade
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. mark — a trace
  23. track — a path
  24. drill — the tool

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