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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. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. rush — hurry
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. game — a match
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. row — a line
  9. pop — to visit
  10. wax — to grow
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. pop — music
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. pop — soda
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. scale — size or range
  21. scale — in music
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. clip — to cut
  24. safe — out of danger

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