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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. clip — a video
  3. cue — a signal
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. cue — for pool
  6. fine — all right
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. hand — in cards
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cue — a hint
  11. pop — music
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pop — to visit
  14. pop — soda
  15. fine — high quality
  16. foot — a measure
  17. clip — for paper
  18. bulb — for light
  19. hand — help
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. squash — to crush
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. foot — the bottom

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