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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. clip — a video
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. root — of a word
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. root — the cause
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. saw — the tool
  13. root — of a plant
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. club — a group
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. clip — to cut
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. saw — the tool
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. clip — for paper
  23. wake — a trail
  24. club — for dancing

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