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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  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. trunk — of a car
  3. clip — a video
  4. clip — to cut
  5. suit — in cards
  6. mate — a partner
  7. present — a gift
  8. mate — to breed
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. key — in music
  12. mate — a friend
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. key — the most important part
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. present — there
  17. key — for a lock
  18. suit — to fit
  19. suit — clothes
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. fine — high quality
  23. present — the time now
  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