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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. swing — music
  3. net — after costs
  4. clip — a video
  5. dip — to sink
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. clip — for paper
  8. clip — to cut
  9. present — the time now
  10. present — there
  11. swing — to play on
  12. can — to be able to
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. present — a gift
  16. can — a tin
  17. game — a match
  18. fine — high quality
  19. swing — in golf
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. net — in sport
  22. game — wild animals
  23. net — for catching
  24. fine — all right

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