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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. clip — to cut
  4. present — the time now
  5. cold — not warm
  6. mug — a cup
  7. rock — to move gently
  8. clip — for paper
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. mug — a face
  11. cold — an illness
  12. rock — a stone
  13. pop — to visit
  14. staff — employees
  15. staff — employees
  16. pop — music
  17. rock — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. staff — a stick
  21. clip — a video
  22. wake — a trail
  23. present — a gift
  24. mug — to rob

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