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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. can — a tin
  3. clip — for paper
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. cell — in biology
  6. clip — to cut
  7. season — in sport
  8. row — a line
  9. row — to paddle
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. season — of the year
  13. track — a path
  14. track — to keep track
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. scale — in music
  17. cell — a phone
  18. scale — size or range
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. rash — a series
  21. can — a tin
  22. track — a song
  23. clip — a video
  24. can — to be able to

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