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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. staff — a stick
  4. clip — to cut
  5. shower — rain
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. drill — army training
  9. cap — of ice
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. staff — employees
  12. cap — a hat
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. drill — a practice
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. clip — a video
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. perch — the fish
  19. drill — the tool
  20. shower — to wash
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. staff — employees
  23. cap — a lid
  24. perch — for a bird

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