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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 120 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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. Where did you ________________ them?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. ball — a dance
  4. object — to protest
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. mug — to rob
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. mug — a face
  9. mug — a cup
  10. wound — an injury
  11. clip — to cut
  12. staff — employees
  13. object — an aim
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ball — a great time
  18. clip — for paper
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. clip — a video
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. staff — a stick
  23. object — a thing
  24. staff — employees

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