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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: stick · spring · drill · game · bulb · can · mug · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. spring — the season
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. mug — a cup
  5. mug — to rob
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. clip — a video
  10. clip — for paper
  11. drill — the tool
  12. bulb — for light
  13. spring — a coil
  14. mug — a face
  15. can — to be able to
  16. game — wild animals
  17. drill — army training
  18. bulb — for light
  19. game — a match
  20. drill — a practice
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. can — a tin
  23. can — a tin
  24. spring — of water

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