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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. clip — to cut
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. spell — letters
  6. pop — to visit
  7. band — a ring
  8. pop — soda
  9. spell — magic
  10. last — finally
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. pop — music
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. last — to go on
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. dip — to sink
  18. clip — for paper
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. band — a music group
  21. clip — a video
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. last — final

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