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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. clip — a video
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. cue — for pool
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. fall — the season
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — to drop
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. cue — a signal
  14. bore — to drill
  15. clip — to cut
  16. kid — child
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bore — to tire
  21. clip — for paper
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. cue — a hint
  24. perch — the fish

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