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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. net — for catching
  3. cap — of ice
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rock — music
  6. last — finally
  7. last — final
  8. cap — a lid
  9. cap — a hat
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. clip — for paper
  12. clip — a video
  13. last — to go on
  14. net — in sport
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. net — after costs
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. clip — to cut
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bat — in an idiom

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