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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 116 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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. key — in music
  3. march — music
  4. squash — the sport
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. squash — to crush
  8. clip — a video
  9. can — a tin
  10. key — the most important part
  11. can — to be able to
  12. game — wild animals
  13. can — a tin
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. march — the month
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. game — a match
  18. key — for a lock
  19. wound — an injury
  20. wound — an injury
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. march — the month
  23. game — a kind of play
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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