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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. field — farmland
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bass — low music
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. face — to point toward
  9. face — part of the head
  10. swing — to play on
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. swing — in golf
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ball — a round shape
  17. ball — a great time
  18. clip — to cut
  19. bass — the fish
  20. swing — music
  21. clip — a video
  22. face — to confront
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. mouse — the animal

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