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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. present — a gift
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. clip — a video
  6. present — there
  7. clip — for paper
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. tube — the underground
  11. pop — to visit
  12. lean — thin
  13. saw — the tool
  14. clip — to cut
  15. cap — a lid
  16. present — the time now
  17. charge — a price
  18. charge — in control
  19. saw — the tool
  20. tube — a container
  21. cap — a hat
  22. charge — electricity
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. cap — of ice

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