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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. march — the month
  5. clip — a video
  6. march — music
  7. fine — high quality
  8. court — of law
  9. snap — to click
  10. pound — a weight
  11. march — the month
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. pound — to hit hard
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. object — a thing
  18. fine — all right
  19. court — for sport
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. court — of a king
  22. object — to protest
  23. object — an aim
  24. clip — for paper

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