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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. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. clip — to cut
  3. present — the time now
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. clip — for paper
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. present — a gift
  8. band — a music group
  9. lean — to rest against
  10. present — there
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. band — a ring
  14. ground — crushed
  15. land — to come down
  16. lean — to bend
  17. ground — the earth
  18. land — a country
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. ground — a position
  21. clip — a video
  22. land — ground
  23. lean — thin
  24. bowl — a football final

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