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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. last — to go on
  3. wind — moving air
  4. wind — moving air
  5. wound — an injury
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. last — finally
  8. clip — for paper
  9. club — for dancing
  10. scale — size or range
  11. scale — for weighing
  12. club — for golf
  13. wound — an injury
  14. clip — a video
  15. club — a group
  16. scale — in music
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. present — the time now
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — to recline
  21. clip — to cut
  22. present — there
  23. last — final
  24. present — a gift

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