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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. rest — what's left
  3. clip — a video
  4. track — a song
  5. roll — a cake
  6. squash — to crush
  7. deal — to handle
  8. track — to keep track
  9. roll — a list
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. clip — to cut
  12. scale — size or range
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. rest — what's left
  17. clip — for paper
  18. track — a path
  19. scale — in music
  20. wind — moving air
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. wind — moving air
  23. rest — a break
  24. deal — an agreement

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