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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  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. last — to go on
  2. bass — the fish
  3. shower — rain
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. pound — a weight
  6. key — the most important part
  7. bass — low music
  8. shower — to wash
  9. key — in music
  10. key — for a lock
  11. foot — part of the body
  12. last — finally
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — to cut
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. rush — hurry
  22. last — final
  23. foot — a measure
  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