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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. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. My father caught me by the ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. clip — to cut
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. rush — hurry
  6. wake — a trail
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. march — the month
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. clip — a video
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. march — the month
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. pitch — completely
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. clip — for paper
  23. pitch — a sports field
  24. march — music

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