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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  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. key — for a lock
  2. cue — a signal
  3. clip — to cut
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — for paper
  6. branch — a division
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. key — in music
  9. club — a group
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cue — for pool
  15. chest — a box
  16. club — for dancing
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. club — for golf
  19. chest — of your body
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. cue — a hint
  22. snap — to click
  23. branch — of a tree
  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