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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. clip — a video
  4. mate — a partner
  5. mug — to rob
  6. roll — a cake
  7. ball — a great time
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. mug — a cup
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. roll — a list
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. mug — a face
  15. clip — to cut
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. row — to paddle
  19. ball — a dance
  20. row — a line
  21. stand — to bear
  22. mate — to breed
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. mate — a friend

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