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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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. mug — a face
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. clip — a video
  5. date — the fruit
  6. present — a gift
  7. clip — for paper
  8. lean — to bend
  9. present — the time now
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. present — there
  13. dip — to sink
  14. spell — letters
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. spell — a short time
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. clip — to cut
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. lean — thin
  21. spell — magic
  22. mug — to rob
  23. date — on the calendar
  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