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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. cue — for pool
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. clip — to cut
  5. swing — music
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. clip — for paper
  8. race — the arms race
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. ball — a dance
  11. plane — a tool
  12. band — a ring
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. cue — a hint
  15. cue — a signal
  16. race — humankind
  17. swing — in golf
  18. race — a contest
  19. clip — a video
  20. band — a music group
  21. toast — bread
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. swing — to play on
  24. band — a rubber band

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