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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 120 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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. cell — in biology
  3. rest — what's left
  4. scale — in music
  5. rest — a break
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. mine — for digging
  8. lean — thin
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. clip — a video
  12. clip — for paper
  13. present — there
  14. lean — to bend
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. pitch — completely
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. present — the time now
  19. pitch — a sports field
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. rest — what's left
  22. clip — to cut
  23. cell — a phone
  24. present — a gift

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