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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bound · clip · mark · bat · kid · scale · arm · cap

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. bat — the animal
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. bound — tied together
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. clip — to cut
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. mark — a grade
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. scale — size or range
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. cap — a lid
  13. bound — certain
  14. cap — a hat
  15. kid — child
  16. clip — for paper
  17. bound — obliged
  18. mark — a trace
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. cap — of ice
  21. kid — to tease
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. clip — a video
  24. scale — for weighing

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