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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 116 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 · scale · squash · safe · field · snap · bay · bat

  1. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. clip — a video
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. snap — to click
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. bat — the animal
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. clip — to cut
  10. field — a subject
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. clip — for paper
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. scale — size or range
  18. field — farmland
  19. scale — in music
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. field — for sport
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. squash — the sport
  24. safe — out of danger

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