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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. It's one o'clock ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. staff — employees
  3. sharp — exactly
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. clip — to cut
  6. object — a thing
  7. object — an aim
  8. clip — for paper
  9. mine — for digging
  10. chip — to eat
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. chip — for betting
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. clip — a video
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. sharp — clever
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. object — to protest
  21. staff — a stick
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. staff — employees

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