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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the meat?
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. chest — of your body
  4. season — in sport
  5. saw — the tool
  6. chest — of your body
  7. drill — a practice
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. drill — army training
  10. clip — a video
  11. charge — electricity
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. season — to add flavour
  14. chest — a box
  15. roll — a cake
  16. perch — the fish
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. saw — the tool
  19. roll — a list
  20. season — of the year
  21. charge — in control
  22. drill — the tool
  23. charge — a price
  24. clip — for paper

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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