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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 take my ________________ from you.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. can — a tin
  3. capital — money
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. clip — a video
  6. rash — a series
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. clip — to cut
  9. scale — size or range
  10. capital — a city
  11. rash — hasty
  12. cue — for pool
  13. scale — in music
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. game — wild animals
  17. cue — a signal
  18. can — a tin
  19. clip — for paper
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. can — to be able to
  22. game — a match
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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