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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. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. rush — hurry
  3. present — there
  4. face — part of the head
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. net — for catching
  7. clip — a video
  8. clip — to cut
  9. face — to confront
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. present — a gift
  13. face — to point toward
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. track — a song
  17. present — the time now
  18. track — to keep track
  19. fine — all right
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. track — a path
  22. net — after costs
  23. fine — high quality
  24. clip — for paper

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