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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. clip — a video
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. cell — in biology
  7. tube — a container
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. tube — the underground
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. wake — a trail
  13. ball — a great time
  14. rash — a series
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. clip — for paper
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. rash — hasty
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — the animal
  21. ball — a dance
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. cell — a phone

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