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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 116 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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He is an ace ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. clip — for paper
  3. hand — in cards
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. rock — a stone
  8. key — for a lock
  9. clip — to cut
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. pitcher — in baseball
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. clip — a video
  16. key — the most important part
  17. hand — help
  18. chair — a leader
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. rock — music
  21. bat — the animal
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. key — in 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