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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 116 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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. can — a tin
  3. prune — to trim
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bank — for money
  8. bank — of a river
  9. can — to be able to
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. can — a tin
  13. clip — to cut
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. clip — a video
  19. bank — for money
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. mine — for digging
  23. pitch — completely
  24. hide — to keep secret

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