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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. clip — for paper
  3. can — a tin
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mark — to pay attention
  6. bass — the fish
  7. mark — a trace
  8. rest — what's left
  9. can — a tin
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. mine — for digging
  14. can — to be able to
  15. mark — a grade
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. rest — what's left
  18. last — finally
  19. clip — to cut
  20. rest — a break
  21. clip — a video
  22. last — final
  23. bass — low music
  24. last — to go on

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