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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — a video
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. ground — the earth
  5. ball — a great time
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. ball — a dance
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. prune — to trim
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. clip — for paper
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. prune — to trim
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. capital — a city
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. ground — a position
  19. capital — money
  20. fork — in a road
  21. mouse — for a computer
  22. ground — crushed
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. prune — the fruit

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