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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. spring — the season
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. spring — a coil
  7. ball — a great time
  8. clip — to cut
  9. deal — to handle
  10. ball — a dance
  11. clip — a video
  12. file — a document
  13. mug — a face
  14. mug — to rob
  15. clip — for paper
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. mug — a cup
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. season — in sport
  21. spring — of water
  22. file — a tool
  23. season — of the year
  24. file — a line of people

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