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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: cue · pop · mouse · cap · spring · clip · can · row

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. can — a tin
  3. cap — a hat
  4. cue — for pool
  5. spring — a coil
  6. row — a line
  7. spring — of water
  8. can — to be able to
  9. clip — a video
  10. spring — the season
  11. clip — for paper
  12. cue — a signal
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. cap — of ice
  15. cue — a hint
  16. clip — to cut
  17. cap — a lid
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. can — a tin
  20. pop — soda
  21. row — to paddle
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. pop — to visit

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