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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  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. clip — for paper
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. last — final
  4. last — to go on
  5. court — for sport
  6. row — to paddle
  7. safe — a strongbox
  8. clip — to cut
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. court — of law
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. present — the time now
  14. present — a gift
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. tube — the underground
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. row — a line
  20. court — of a king
  21. last — finally
  22. tube — a container
  23. present — there
  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