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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. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. clip — a video
  3. field — farmland
  4. bank — for money
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. clip — for paper
  8. key — in music
  9. clip — to cut
  10. file — a tool
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. file — a document
  13. field — for sport
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. bank — of a river
  18. key — for a lock
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. field — a subject
  21. file — a line of people
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bank — for money
  24. key — the most important part

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