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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  8. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  9. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. ground — crushed
  3. bear — the animal
  4. cue — a hint
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. clip — a video
  7. cue — a signal
  8. dip — to sink
  9. cue — for pool
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. track — a path
  12. ground — the earth
  13. clip — for paper
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. ground — a position
  17. bear — the animal
  18. saw — the tool
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. saw — the tool
  21. track — to keep track
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  24. track — a song

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