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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. last — final
  3. tube — a container
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. clip — a video
  6. rash — a series
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. scale — in music
  10. last — to go on
  11. last — finally
  12. stand — for spectators
  13. stand — to bear
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. squash — the sport
  16. squash — to crush
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. scale — size or range
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. rash — hasty
  22. pitch — completely
  23. tube — the underground
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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