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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. object — an aim
  4. object — a thing
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — to cut
  8. cue — a hint
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. cue — for pool
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. branch — a division
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. court — of a king
  18. hand — help
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. cue — a signal
  21. hand — in cards
  22. clip — for paper
  23. court — of law
  24. court — for sport

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