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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. lean — to bend
  4. current — happening now
  5. cap — a hat
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. pitch — a sports field
  8. lean — thin
  9. staff — a stick
  10. ball — a great time
  11. cap — of ice
  12. cap — a lid
  13. pitch — completely
  14. ball — a dance
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. clip — to cut
  17. rash — hasty
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. current — electric
  20. rash — a series
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — employees
  23. clip — a video
  24. current — of water

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