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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 116 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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. fine — high quality
  4. track — to keep track
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bat — the animal
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. cell — in biology
  12. kick — in football
  13. sharp — clever
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. track — a path
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. cell — a phone
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — a video
  22. track — a song
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. fine — all right

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