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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. My father caught me by the ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. clip — a video
  3. game — wild animals
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. game — a match
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. board — to get on
  12. clip — for paper
  13. clip — to cut
  14. board — a committee
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. lean — thin
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. squash — to crush
  19. wake — a trail
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. squash — the sport
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. lean — to bend

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