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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. pop — music
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. bear — the animal
  5. clip — a video
  6. chair — a leader
  7. clip — for paper
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. rest — a break
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. prune — to trim
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. cabinet — a cupboard
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. pop — soda
  17. bear — the animal
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. clip — to cut
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. prune — to trim
  22. pop — to visit
  23. rest — what's left
  24. leaves — of a tree

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