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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. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. firm — decided
  3. clip — a video
  4. face — to point toward
  5. key — the most important part
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — for paper
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. key — for a lock
  10. net — after costs
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. face — part of the head
  13. net — for catching
  14. file — a document
  15. rock — music
  16. key — in music
  17. firm — steady
  18. net — in sport
  19. rock — a stone
  20. bat — the animal
  21. file — a line of people
  22. face — to confront
  23. file — a tool
  24. bat — in an idiom

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