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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: can · ball · track · clip · bore · cap · dip · saw

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. saw — the tool
  3. clip — for paper
  4. clip — to cut
  5. can — a tin
  6. clip — a video
  7. ball — a great time
  8. ball — a dance
  9. cap — of ice
  10. track — a path
  11. track — a song
  12. saw — the tool
  13. bore — to drill
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. can — a tin
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. cap — a hat
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. dip — to dunk
  20. cap — a lid
  21. can — to be able to
  22. bore — to tire
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. dip — to sink

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