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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. nail — on a finger
  4. chest — a box
  5. net — for catching
  6. clip — for paper
  7. fine — high quality
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fall — the season
  10. bass — low music
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. chest — of your body
  14. clip — to cut
  15. fine — all right
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. net — after costs
  18. fall — to drop
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. bass — the fish
  21. fall — to drop
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. net — in sport
  24. clip — a video

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