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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 120 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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. track — a path
  4. rest — a break
  5. clip — a video
  6. rest — what's left
  7. key — the most important part
  8. key — in music
  9. board — a committee
  10. key — for a lock
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bank — for money
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. bank — for money
  15. kid — child
  16. mark — a trace
  17. mark — a grade
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — to cut
  20. track — a song
  21. track — to keep track
  22. board — to get on
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. bank — of a river

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