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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. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  2. Did you ________________ the button?
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — with your hand
  2. press — to push
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. clip — for paper
  5. last — final
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. last — finally
  8. clip — a video
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. press — a publisher
  11. hand — in cards
  12. key — the most important part
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. press — newspapers
  16. key — for a lock
  17. wave — of the sea
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. hand — help
  22. key — in music
  23. clip — to cut
  24. last — to go on

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