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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 120 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. clip — to cut
  3. deal — to handle
  4. game — a match
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. mine — for digging
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. clip — a video
  9. game — wild animals
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. pit — a hole
  14. present — there
  15. present — a gift
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. wave — a sudden rise
  18. present — the time now
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. band — a music group
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. band — a ring
  23. clip — for paper
  24. pit — in a race

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