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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 ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  2. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. cap — of ice
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. clip — for paper
  5. spell — a short time
  6. cap — a lid
  7. key — in music
  8. clip — to cut
  9. spell — magic
  10. fork — in a road
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. spell — letters
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. key — for a lock
  16. key — the most important part
  17. drill — army training
  18. pitch — completely
  19. drill — a practice
  20. cap — a hat
  21. drill — the tool
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. clip — a video

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