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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. game — a match
  3. clip — to cut
  4. root — the cause
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. ground — crushed
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. kick — in football
  10. root — of a plant
  11. ground — a position
  12. spring — of water
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. ground — the earth
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. game — wild animals
  18. spring — the season
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. clip — a video
  21. root — of a word
  22. spring — a coil
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. fan — a supporter

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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