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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. staff — employees
  3. staff — employees
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. drill — army training
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. clip — a video
  8. rest — what's left
  9. staff — a stick
  10. key — the most important part
  11. cell — in biology
  12. rest — a break
  13. cell — a phone
  14. drill — the tool
  15. key — for a lock
  16. wave — with your hand
  17. clip — to cut
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. rest — what's left
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. drill — a practice
  23. key — in music
  24. stick — to attach or keep to

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