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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. scale — in music
  3. track — to keep track
  4. wake — a trail
  5. root — the cause
  6. root — of a word
  7. root — of a plant
  8. track — a path
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. game — wild animals
  11. clip — a video
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. game — a match
  14. scale — size or range
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. track — a song
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. clip — for paper
  21. pop — to visit
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — a sauce
  24. game — a kind of play

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