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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. ball — a great time
  3. bank — for money
  4. clip — to cut
  5. mark — a trace
  6. clip — for paper
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. clip — a video
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. bank — of a river
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. bank — for money
  13. kick — in football
  14. bore — to tire
  15. mark — a grade
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bore — to drill
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. cold — an illness
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. ball — a dance
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. ball — a round shape

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