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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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. key — in music
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. firm — a company
  5. key — the most important part
  6. net — for catching
  7. firm — decided
  8. net — after costs
  9. clip — for paper
  10. clip — a video
  11. kid — child
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — size or range
  14. key — for a lock
  15. kid — to tease
  16. rash — hasty
  17. firm — steady
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. scale — in music
  20. net — in sport
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. clip — to cut
  23. rash — a series
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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