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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 ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. net — in sport
  3. spell — a short time
  4. charge — in control
  5. clip — to cut
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — child
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. spell — letters
  10. spell — magic
  11. net — after costs
  12. kid — to tease
  13. charge — electricity
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. craft — a skill
  18. net — for catching
  19. bowl — a dish
  20. charge — a price
  21. clip — a video
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. craft — boats

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