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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bank — for money
  3. pitch — completely
  4. game — wild animals
  5. cue — a signal
  6. swing — in golf
  7. track — a path
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. track — to keep track
  11. bank — of a river
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bank — for money
  14. cue — a hint
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. cue — for pool
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. clip — a video
  20. track — a song
  21. swing — to play on
  22. snap — to click
  23. swing — music
  24. game — a match

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