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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 want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  22. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. tube — a container
  3. file — a line of people
  4. clip — a video
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. march — the month
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. march — music
  9. file — a document
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. tube — the underground
  13. clip — to cut
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. perch — the fish
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. rock — a stone
  19. file — a tool
  20. squash — to crush
  21. march — the month
  22. rock — music
  23. squash — the sport
  24. racket — for tennis

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