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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 teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. file — a tool
  3. branch — a division
  4. clip — to cut
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. ball — a dance
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. ball — a great time
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. roll — a cake
  14. clip — for paper
  15. patient — calm and waiting
  16. clip — a video
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. file — a document
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. file — a line of people
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. jam — in traffic

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