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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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Word bank
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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. clip — to cut
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. pop — music
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. pop — to visit
  7. degree — an amount
  8. deal — to handle
  9. deal — an agreement
  10. clip — a video
  11. present — a gift
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pop — soda
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. degree — temperature
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. clip — for paper
  20. degree — from a university
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — in football
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. present — the time now

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