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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  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. clip — for paper
  2. fine — high quality
  3. bay — a part of the sea
  4. object — an aim
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. object — a thing
  7. season — of the year
  8. wind — moving air
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. bay — to keep at bay
  13. clip — to cut
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. object — to protest
  16. squash — to crush
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. wind — moving air
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. season — in sport
  22. fine — all right
  23. clip — a video
  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