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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. swing — to play on
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. clip — to cut
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. face — part of the head
  12. clip — for paper
  13. arm — a part of something
  14. swing — in golf
  15. swing — music
  16. foot — a measure
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. face — to confront
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. mark — a trace
  23. face — to point toward
  24. clip — a video

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