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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: mouse · clip · spell · cold · mug · jam · squash · ball

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Where did you ________________ them?
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. jam — a tight spot
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. mug — a cup
  5. ball — a dance
  6. spell — magic
  7. ball — a round shape
  8. squash — to crush
  9. ball — a great time
  10. spell — a short time
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. mug — to rob
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. mug — a face
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. squash — the sport
  18. clip — to cut
  19. mouse — for a computer
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. cold — an illness
  22. clip — for paper
  23. spell — letters
  24. clip — a video

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