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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. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. dip — to sink
  3. squash — to crush
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. march — the month
  7. squash — the sport
  8. march — the month
  9. land — ground
  10. march — music
  11. net — after costs
  12. net — for catching
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. land — a country
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. clip — for paper
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. clip — to cut
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. land — to come down
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. net — in sport
  24. clip — a video

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