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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: clip · mate · leaves · pitcher · kid · cue · racket · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  17. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. clip — for paper
  3. kid — to tease
  4. squash — to crush
  5. kid — child
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. clip — a video
  9. mate — a friend
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. mate — to breed
  15. mate — a partner
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. cue — a hint
  18. squash — the sport
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. cue — a signal
  21. cue — for pool
  22. clip — to cut
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. racket — a loud noise

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