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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. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — a hat
  2. bark — to shout
  3. clip — a video
  4. land — ground
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. clip — for paper
  7. spell — magic
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. club — for dancing
  12. cap — of ice
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. cap — a lid
  15. club — a group
  16. land — a country
  17. land — to come down
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. clip — to cut
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. spell — a short time
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. club — for golf
  24. spell — letters

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