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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Should I buy a wireless ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. court — for sport
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. mine — for digging
  8. clip — a video
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. ball — a great time
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. clip — for paper
  19. court — of a king
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. court — of law
  22. ball — a dance
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. mouse — for a computer

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