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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. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. cue — a hint
  2. object — an aim
  3. spell — letters
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. object — to protest
  7. scale — size or range
  8. clip — for paper
  9. cue — a signal
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. spell — a short time
  12. stem — of a plant
  13. clip — a video
  14. stem — to come from
  15. pop — to visit
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. pop — music
  18. pop — soda
  19. scale — in music
  20. spell — magic
  21. cue — for pool
  22. clip — to cut
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. object — a thing

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