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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. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. staff — employees
  4. clip — a video
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. pitch — completely
  7. file — a line of people
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. clip — for paper
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. file — a document
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. clip — to cut
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to bend
  19. staff — a stick
  20. chair — a leader
  21. file — a tool
  22. staff — employees
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. arm — part of the body

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