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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. cue — a hint
  3. charge — electricity
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. cue — for pool
  6. mate — a partner
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — a video
  13. mine — for digging
  14. tube — the underground
  15. mate — a friend
  16. tube — a container
  17. charge — a price
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. bay — to keep at bay
  20. mate — to breed
  21. cue — a signal
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. charge — in control
  24. racket — for tennis

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