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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — clever
  2. clip — for paper
  3. perch — the fish
  4. cue — for pool
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. clip — a video
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. cell — a phone
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. present — there
  15. bear — the animal
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — a hint
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. cell — in biology
  21. present — the time now
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bear — the animal
  24. present — a gift

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