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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. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — a loud noise
  2. spell — a short time
  3. bank — for money
  4. pop — music
  5. drill — a practice
  6. clip — for paper
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — the tool
  9. kid — to tease
  10. spell — letters
  11. safe — a strongbox
  12. kid — child
  13. safe — out of danger
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. clip — a video
  16. bank — of a river
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. spell — magic
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. clip — to cut
  22. pop — to visit
  23. bank — for money
  24. pop — soda

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