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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. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. key — the most important part
  3. season — of the year
  4. fine — all right
  5. stem — to come from
  6. sharp — clever
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. clip — for paper
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. key — for a lock
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. clip — a video
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. key — in music
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. fine — high quality
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. rash — hasty
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. season — in sport
  24. rash — a series

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