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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. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. My mare is ________________ in color.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The ________________ took off on time.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — music
  2. hand — in cards
  3. last — to go on
  4. clip — a video
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. hand — help
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. plane — a tool
  9. bay — a horse colour
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. last — finally
  13. clip — to cut
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. plane — an aircraft
  16. last — final
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. swing — to play on
  19. clip — for paper
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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