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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  3. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. wave — with your hand
  3. wave — of the sea
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. clip — to cut
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — a video
  10. kick — in football
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. march — the month
  14. key — in music
  15. key — the most important part
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. charge — in control
  18. charge — electricity
  19. march — music
  20. charge — a price
  21. key — for a lock
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. march — the month
  24. pound — a weight

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