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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: clip · march · scale · chair · can · roll · sharp · game

  1. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. scale — size or range
  3. clip — to cut
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. can — a tin
  6. clip — for paper
  7. sharp — clever
  8. roll — a list
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. roll — a cake
  11. chair — a leader
  12. can — to be able to
  13. march — music
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. can — a tin
  17. clip — a video
  18. game — wild animals
  19. scale — in music
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. march — the month
  22. game — a match
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. march — the month

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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