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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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468
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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. ball — a dance
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. tube — the underground
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. present — the time now
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. tube — a container
  16. season — of the year
  17. ball — a great time
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. season — in sport
  21. present — a gift
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. present — there
  24. nail — for a hammer

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