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

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  8. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. net — in sport
  3. club — a group
  4. key — in music
  5. club — for golf
  6. clip — for paper
  7. key — for a lock
  8. wax — for sculpting
  9. net — for catching
  10. clip — a video
  11. can — a tin
  12. key — the most important part
  13. rest — a break
  14. net — after costs
  15. wax — to grow
  16. clip — to cut
  17. rest — what's left
  18. can — to be able to
  19. club — for dancing
  20. wax — in the ear
  21. last — to go on
  22. last — final
  23. rest — what's left
  24. last — finally

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