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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. clip — for paper
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. board — a committee
  5. wind — moving air
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. roll — a cake
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. roll — a list
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. rush — hurry
  13. wind — moving air
  14. jam — a tight spot
  15. lean — to bend
  16. board — to get on
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. lean — thin
  20. jam — in traffic
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. clip — to cut
  23. clip — a video
  24. board — a flat piece

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