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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: leaves · racket · rush · fine · mark · pound · clip · fall

  1. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. pound — a weight
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. fall — to drop
  7. mark — a grade
  8. clip — a video
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. fine — high quality
  13. clip — to cut
  14. mark — a trace
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. fall — the season
  17. fall — to drop
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. rush — hurry
  21. pound — to hit hard
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. fine — all right

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