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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: roll · clip · squash · leaves · bore · coach · track · ball

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. clip — to cut
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. ball — a great time
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. bore — to drill
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. ball — a dance
  10. roll — a list
  11. track — a path
  12. clip — a video
  13. squash — the sport
  14. squash — to crush
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. clip — for paper
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. track — to keep track
  20. bore — to tire
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. bore — gave birth
  24. track — a song

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