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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. pit — in a race
  4. last — final
  5. spring — a coil
  6. jam — a tight spot
  7. bulb — for light
  8. clip — a video
  9. bulb — for light
  10. pop — soda
  11. clip — to cut
  12. last — to go on
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. pop — music
  15. pop — to visit
  16. pit — a hole
  17. spring — the season
  18. spring — of water
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. jam — to spread on bread
  23. last — finally
  24. arm — part of the body

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