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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 124 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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. last — to go on
  4. object — an aim
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. spell — letters
  7. last — finally
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. object — to protest
  10. clip — for paper
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. object — a thing
  13. spell — a short time
  14. clip — a video
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. spell — magic
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. last — final
  21. bulb — for light
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. bulb — for light
  24. coach — a trainer

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