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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. clip — to cut
  3. chest — of your body
  4. board — a committee
  5. temple — side of the head
  6. clip — for paper
  7. chest — a box
  8. bass — the fish
  9. clip — a video
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. fine — all right
  12. saw — the tool
  13. fine — high quality
  14. bound — obliged
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. bound — certain
  17. board — to get on
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. bound — tied together
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bass — low music
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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