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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. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. kid — child
  3. march — the month
  4. track — a path
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. march — music
  8. charge — a price
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. march — the month
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. charge — electricity
  19. clip — a video
  20. track — to keep track
  21. kid — to tease
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. charge — in control
  24. pitcher — a jug

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