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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. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. clip — for paper
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. squash — to crush
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. rest — a break
  8. rest — what's left
  9. clip — to cut
  10. rest — what's left
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. court — for sport
  13. clip — a video
  14. lean — thin
  15. lean — to bend
  16. bass — low music
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. wake — a trail
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. bass — the fish
  21. snap — to click
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. court — of a king
  24. squash — the sport

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