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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. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. hand — help
  4. wind — moving air
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. fine — high quality
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. toast — the most admired
  10. pitch — completely
  11. clip — a video
  12. wind — moving air
  13. toast — bread
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. wind — to turn a key
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. clip — to cut
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. clip — for paper
  24. hand — in cards

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