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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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  4. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. key — for a lock
  3. object — a thing
  4. object — to protest
  5. clip — for paper
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. key — the most important part
  8. object — an aim
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. key — in music
  12. clip — a video
  13. pitch — completely
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. bass — the fish
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. clip — to cut
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. wake — a trail
  23. bass — low music
  24. pitch — a sales talk

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