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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 120 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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  8. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. scale — in music
  4. clip — a video
  5. staff — employees
  6. game — a match
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. pound — for dogs
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. scale — size or range
  11. patient — calm and waiting
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. clip — to cut
  14. fine — all right
  15. perch — the fish
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. fine — high quality
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. game — wild animals
  20. staff — a stick
  21. pound — a weight
  22. clip — for paper
  23. staff — employees
  24. fine — a penalty

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