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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
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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: track · pit · cabinet · clip · game · pop · straw · leaves

  1. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. game — wild animals
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pit — a hole
  6. track — to keep track
  7. track — a path
  8. track — a song
  9. pop — soda
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. game — a match
  15. pit — in a race
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. pop — music
  18. clip — for paper
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. clip — a video
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. pop — to visit

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