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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. clip — to cut
  4. wake — a trail
  5. land — to come down
  6. clip — a video
  7. land — ground
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. land — a country
  11. clip — for paper
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. pop — to visit
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. pop — soda
  17. pop — music
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. snap — to click
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. pitch — a sports field
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. pitch — completely
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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