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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. can — a tin
  3. band — a music group
  4. squash — to crush
  5. game — a match
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. wake — a trail
  10. drill — army training
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. band — a ring
  15. drill — the tool
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wake — to stop sleeping
  18. can — a tin
  19. can — to be able to
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. drill — a practice
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. squash — the sport

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