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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. root — of a word
  3. perch — the fish
  4. club — for golf
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. deal — a big deal
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. root — the cause
  9. root — of a plant
  10. present — there
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. pit — a hole
  13. clip — a video
  14. deal — to handle
  15. club — for dancing
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. present — a gift
  18. band — a music group
  19. clip — to cut
  20. band — a ring
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. pit — in a race
  23. present — the time now
  24. club — a group

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