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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a flat piece
  2. track — a song
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. cap — a lid
  6. last — to go on
  7. board — a committee
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. clip — a video
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. track — to keep track
  12. cap — a hat
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. last — final
  15. last — finally
  16. cap — of ice
  17. prune — to trim
  18. clip — to cut
  19. board — to get on
  20. deal — to handle
  21. clip — for paper
  22. track — a path
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. prune — to trim

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