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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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  6. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. clip — a video
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. can — a tin
  5. snap — to snap out of it
  6. can — a tin
  7. can — to be able to
  8. snap — to click
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — for paper
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. rock — a stone
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. rock — music
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. perch — the fish
  18. chair — a leader
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. net — after costs
  22. net — in sport
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. pound — a weight

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