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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. He is an ace ________________.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. chip — to eat
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. shower — to wash
  6. clip — to cut
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. mine — for digging
  9. pitcher — in baseball
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. mark — a trace
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. shower — rain
  17. clip — a video
  18. chip — for betting
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. mark — a grade
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. mouse — the animal

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