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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's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — to roll
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — for paper
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. clip — a video
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. bark — to shout
  8. land — ground
  9. staff — employees
  10. charge — electricity
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. staff — a stick
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. charge — in control
  19. land — to come down
  20. land — a country
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. staff — employees
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. charge — a price

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