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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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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: racket · rock · perch · kid · clip · dip · bay · pop

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. We're almost out of ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. clip — for paper
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. pop — music
  7. clip — to cut
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. rock — a stone
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. dip — to sink
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. rock — music
  15. pop — to visit
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. pop — soda
  19. kid — to tease
  20. clip — a video
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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