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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. object — to protest
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. prune — to trim
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. pound — a weight
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. clip — to cut
  13. object — an aim
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. clip — a video
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. object — a thing
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. clip — for paper
  22. prune — to trim
  23. chip — for betting
  24. pound — for dogs

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