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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. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. staff — a stick
  3. clip — a video
  4. can — to be able to
  5. clip — to cut
  6. bound — obliged
  7. can — a tin
  8. bound — tied together
  9. staff — employees
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. bound — certain
  12. can — a tin
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. wave — with your hand
  16. perch — the fish
  17. clip — for paper
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. foot — a measure
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. wave — of the sea
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. perch — for a bird

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