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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: wind · clip · pitch · pop · tube · saw · drill · cap

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. cap — a hat
  3. pop — soda
  4. drill — a practice
  5. clip — a video
  6. pop — music
  7. saw — the tool
  8. drill — the tool
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. cap — a lid
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. tube — a container
  17. drill — army training
  18. cap — of ice
  19. tube — the underground
  20. clip — for paper
  21. saw — the tool
  22. pop — to visit
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. wind — moving air

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