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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. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. craft — boats
  3. clip — a video
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. land — to come down
  7. hand — help
  8. clip — to cut
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. squash — the sport
  11. mug — a face
  12. mug — to rob
  13. hand — in cards
  14. land — ground
  15. mug — a cup
  16. squash — to crush
  17. craft — a skill
  18. clip — for paper
  19. craft — a handicraft
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. ball — a great time
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. land — a country

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