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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  8. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. pit — in a race
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. clip — a video
  6. bank — for money
  7. cue — for pool
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — an amount
  14. root — of a plant
  15. clip — to cut
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. pit — a hole
  19. root — of a word
  20. bank — for money
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. degree — from a university
  23. bank — of a river
  24. root — the cause

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