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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. tube — a container
  3. spell — letters
  4. can — a tin
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. clip — a video
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. tube — the underground
  9. rest — what's left
  10. clip — to cut
  11. can — to be able to
  12. spell — magic
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. row — to paddle
  15. branch — a division
  16. rest — a break
  17. row — a line
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. spell — a short time
  20. can — a tin
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. rest — what's left
  23. clip — for paper
  24. row — a quarrel

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