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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. key — in music
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. clip — for paper
  6. tube — a container
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. kick — in football
  10. bore — to tire
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. game — a match
  14. game — wild animals
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. clip — a video
  17. key — the most important part
  18. key — for a lock
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. bore — to drill
  22. sharp — clever
  23. clip — to cut
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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