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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. spell — letters
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. spell — a short time
  8. clip — to cut
  9. clip — a video
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. spell — magic
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. rest — a break
  16. bowl — a football final
  17. bat — the animal
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. rash — a series
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. rash — hasty
  24. rest — what's left

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