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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. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. last — to go on
  3. object — an aim
  4. mug — a cup
  5. clip — for paper
  6. mine — for digging
  7. clip — a video
  8. object — to protest
  9. last — finally
  10. last — final
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. object — a thing
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. squash — to crush
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. squash — the sport
  18. pop — soda
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. pop — to visit
  21. pop — music
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. mug — to rob
  24. clip — to cut

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