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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. bass — the fish
  3. last — to go on
  4. deal — to handle
  5. court — of a king
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. court — for sport
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. can — a tin
  11. last — final
  12. bass — low music
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. can — to be able to
  15. clip — a video
  16. court — of law
  17. can — a tin
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. branch — a division
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. clip — to cut
  23. last — finally
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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