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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. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. saw — the tool
  4. clip — a video
  5. game — a match
  6. tear — from crying
  7. bore — gave birth
  8. pitch — completely
  9. clip — for paper
  10. tear — from crying
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. band — a music group
  13. pitch — a sales talk
  14. tear — to rip
  15. game — wild animals
  16. band — a ring
  17. saw — the tool
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bore — to tire
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. bore — to drill
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. squash — to crush
  24. squash — the sport

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