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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. ball — a great time
  3. swing — music
  4. land — a country
  5. bass — low music
  6. land — to come down
  7. clip — to cut
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. swing — to play on
  12. rock — music
  13. land — ground
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. bass — the fish
  16. clip — a video
  17. rock — a stone
  18. swing — in golf
  19. fork — in a road
  20. fork — to eat with
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. snap — to click
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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