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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 120 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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. hand — in cards
  3. spell — magic
  4. temple — side of the head
  5. perch — the fish
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — a short time
  11. hand — help
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. ball — a great time
  18. clip — for paper
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. ball — a dance
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — to eat
  24. pitch — completely

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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