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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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Word bank
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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. bass — the instrument
  4. degree — an amount
  5. degree — temperature
  6. snap — to click
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. row — to paddle
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bass — the fish
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. row — a line
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. degree — from a university
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. bass — low music
  18. ball — a dance
  19. clip — to cut
  20. ball — a great time
  21. object — an aim
  22. object — a thing
  23. clip — a video
  24. object — to protest

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