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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 116 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. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. pitch — completely
  4. ball — a great time
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chip — to eat
  8. chip — for betting
  9. can — to be able to
  10. fine — all right
  11. lean — to bend
  12. clip — to cut
  13. ball — a dance
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. fine — high quality
  16. lean — thin
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. clip — a video
  20. can — a tin
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. band — a music group
  23. band — a ring
  24. can — a tin

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