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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 120 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. The ________________ went through the wall.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. hand — in cards
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. hand — help
  11. clip — a video
  12. nail — on a finger
  13. clip — to cut
  14. pit — a hole
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. pit — in a race

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