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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. clip — to cut
  5. pound — a weight
  6. court — for sport
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. key — the most important part
  9. season — of the year
  10. rock — music
  11. court — of a king
  12. foot — a measure
  13. clip — a video
  14. key — for a lock
  15. pound — for dogs
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. court — of law
  18. key — in music
  19. rock — a stone
  20. hand — help
  21. season — in sport
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. hand — in cards
  24. hand — part of the body

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