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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: mouse · clip · lie · stand · rest · wind · pop · jam

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. wind — moving air
  3. lie — to recline
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. pop — music
  7. rest — what's left
  8. wind — moving air
  9. stand — to bear
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. clip — a video
  13. rest — what's left
  14. pop — soda
  15. clip — for paper
  16. clip — to cut
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. rest — a break
  23. stand — on your feet
  24. jam — in traffic

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