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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. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. safe — a strongbox
  2. wind — moving air
  3. clip — for paper
  4. club — for golf
  5. game — wild animals
  6. bound — tied together
  7. game — a match
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bound — obliged
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. club — a group
  13. saw — the tool
  14. club — for dancing
  15. clip — to cut
  16. squash — to crush
  17. squash — the sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. saw — the tool
  21. bound — certain
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. safe — out of danger
  24. clip — a video

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