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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. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. This piece is in a major ________________.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — for paper
  2. file — a line of people
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. field — a subject
  5. foot — a measure
  6. field — farmland
  7. key — in music
  8. clip — to cut
  9. field — for sport
  10. cap — a lid
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. cap — of ice
  13. file — a tool
  14. key — the most important part
  15. saw — the tool
  16. tube — a container
  17. saw — the tool
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. clip — a video
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. key — for a lock
  22. file — a document
  23. cap — a hat
  24. tube — the underground

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