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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 120 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 owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — for a bird
  2. clip — for paper
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. scale — in music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. chip — to eat
  9. stand — to bear
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. chip — for betting
  12. perch — the fish
  13. band — a ring
  14. sharp — clever
  15. prune — to trim
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. scale — size or range
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. clip — a video
  21. band — a music group
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. clip — to cut

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