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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. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  24. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a grade
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. stand — to bear
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. clip — a video
  6. shower — rain
  7. kid — child
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. clip — to cut
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. kid — to tease
  17. shower — to wash
  18. clip — for paper
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. dip — to sink
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. mark — a trace
  24. stand — for spectators

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