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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. ball — a great time
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. saw — the tool
  5. drill — the tool
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. ball — a dance
  8. court — for sport
  9. clip — a video
  10. court — of a king
  11. can — to be able to
  12. drill — a practice
  13. clip — for paper
  14. can — a tin
  15. chip — to eat
  16. drill — army training
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. saw — the tool
  19. clip — to cut
  20. can — a tin
  21. court — of law
  22. chip — for betting
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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