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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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Word bank
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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. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. clip — a video
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. can — a tin
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. can — to be able to
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. perch — the fish
  13. craft — boats
  14. scale — in music
  15. clip — for paper
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. scale — size or range
  19. clip — to cut
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. craft — a skill
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. game — wild animals
  24. game — a match

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